Together, We Rise Once Again(Break Time! Be Back Soon!)
by Phanzuru
Summary: Could we potentially see ourselves as something more than what meets the eye? If so, what does it take to become something that you're truly not? Like a hero? Was it the betrayal of one world's people? Even when betrayed, will that hero still prove himself to be worthy of the title? Of course, Jaune wouldn't know because all of his life... he found himself useless.
1. Chapter 1

What does it truly mean to become someone that you're not? For what reason does one have the ambition to become something that overpasses their own limitations? As what everyone has, there was always a spark of envy within someone's heart. And with that envy, one will use that feeling as an excuse to become something even greater. They want to become something that is greater than regular status of an 'regular person'.

Even if becoming something greater required a sacrifice, then would they still let go of something they truly loved…?

Or would they let go and march forward with no hesitation in their minds…?

"Raphtalia, when you grow up, you will eventually come to notice that there are some things in the world that you won't like." Her father spoke wise words as he had Raphtalia sitting on his lap. In front of her, lies a picture book; said book displayed a page that revealed a man standing proudly on top of a monster that had been slayed with his sword.

"Some… things that I won't like?" Raphtalia cocked her head with a confused look. This was the third time her father had read this book to her. This was her favorite book to read on her free time besides going outside where she could play with Rifana and Keel.

"Yes, let's say that you eat something that wasn't to your liking? Or how about someone who might mistreat you poorly? What would you do-"

"Oh stop it, Dear. You don't need to make her worried about others at this age. She's only 12." Her mother walked in with cups of tea for everyone to drink. Her mother smiles as she notices that he was reading Raphtalia's favorite book that was always able to put her to sleep.

"Well, it's better to be prepared than never, right?" Her father scratched the back of his head nervously as he intentionally wanted Raphtalia to be prepared for the real world that was only a few years away.

"True, but still, you're going to make her concerned about strangers now. We don't want her to be afraid of people that could potentially be friends with her." As she sat down on the chair across from them, she sips her tea.

"Well, she better not be talking to random strangers. Because… well, if they look creepy to her, then I might need to… _talk _to them so they won't talk to her again." Raphtalia found her head cocking to the side because she noticed the weird gleam in his eye.

"Sigh… Raphtalia, don't speak to strangers that look creepy. Well, only speak to people that you can tell has a good heart. Sometimes, in this cruel and harsh world, there exist people that are good and bad." She stares at her mother as she was about to ask her a question.

"Why… should there be a difference between good and bad people? Aren't they still people at the end of things?" When she hears 'good and bad', Raphtalia can only wonder to herself if there actually were people out there that had evil intentions.

"Raphtalia… hmm, when you read this book, what do you think of the person who wants to protect his people from the grasp of evil?"

"A… hero?" Her father smiled.

"That's right. Now, if we're talking about good and bad people, it's hard to tell the difference between the two. One is fighting for the world, and the other is fighting for the sake for themselves and they would sacrifice everything and everyone to have it. Now that you know these types of people, you want to know what makes them similar?"

"It's their drive to want to make a change in the world…" Her mother had answered the question before she could open her mouth.

"Their… drive?" Raphtalia wondered what that word meant. For what reason did that make someone distinctly different from one another?

"Yes, their drive to create something for themselves or for the others around them. However, even if they become good or bad, there is always someone out there to follow them with that goal. To them, that drive is what they needed to hear in order for that person to become their hero." Her father looked at his wife as he smiled at her. For his response, she smiled as well.

"There are bad guys that the hero has to defeat to become acknowledged, Raphtalia. Even if they are the slightest bit similar, they both have different goals. And for that, the good guy has to defeat the good guy." Her mother stared at the book that Raphtalia had in her hands to prove her point.

"Beat… the bad guys?"

"Raphtalia, for a hero, what do you think is the most important rule they have to follow first? Save others, or fight the bad guy?" Her father was starting to test her again. She hated it when her father does that.

"Um… to defeat the bad guys first?" Her father shook her head.

"Incorrect. Their job is to always save the people who are in peril." She pouted at the both of them because earlier, they were simply saying that the hero needs to beat the bad guys.

"That's not fair! I thought you had to fight the bad guys first!" Her mother giggled as her father started to chuckle. Now they were just straight up teasing her now…

"How about this? Raphtalia, if you was a hero, what would you do first? Save us, or fight the monsters?" Her father gave her another question to answer.

"Save my family! I always love my family!" Instantly answering the question, again, her parents started to laugh as she was starting to understand what they meant by saving others.

"That's right. Now, pretend that others were your family. Would you still save them?"

"...I don't know." Raphtalia honestly answered the question. Would she save people that she doesn't even know? What if they ended up being bad people and she didn't even know it?

"Well, it's for you to decide that, then. Well now, I think it's time we all get some rest. Your mother's hero needs to call it a day for the good deed he's done today."

"Father, you were a… hero?" Raphtalia wanted to ask the question as quick as he said that. If it was true, then her father was actually a hero! Maybe she could get some more pointers as to know more about good guys and bad guys!

"Well, he was more like a savior than a hero." Her mother giggled a bit before sitting up from her seat. Then, she noticed that the two of them hadn't even touched their tea yet. For that, she smiles. Maybe they were so into their conversation that they hadn't noticed that it was there for them to drink.

"Hey, that's basically the same thing!" Her father retorded.

"Okay, okay. Maybe you saved my heart when I found myself falling for you."

"Not… what I expected for you to say, but I'll take it!" Her father tries to hide his blush, but failed to even do that. Raphtalia watched the two with a grossed out face. She hated it when they acted lovey-dovey in front of her. She wonders if she would end up doing that when she grows up.

"Alright, Raphtalia, it's time to hit the hay. You have a big day-" Raphtalia wished she could complained to her father that she wanted to stay up for a bit longer, but she couldn't. She was only able to hear a loud bang that was heard throughout the house.

Her front door had been forced opened…

"G-Go! We don't have much time!" A Demi-Human had forced the door opened as came in to start yelling at the family. For whatever reason, Raphtalia and her family could only stare with widened eyes. Not only were they shocked to see someone barge into their house, but there was something else that bothered them all…

He was covered in blood…

"W-what…?" Instantly, Raphtalia's vision was covered as her mother covered her eyes from seeing anything else. She was starting to become afraid now. Why did someone barge into their house to start yelling at them? Why… was he covered in blood?!

"What's going on out there?!" Her father, who was already concerned for the safety of the Demi-Human, asked him what could possibly be out there doing this.

"W-we're being overrun. P-please… you have to go… now!" Before he could say anything else, he was cut off by a brute force knocking the wind out of him. Raphtalia couldn't see anything anymore. Everything that she could see before, had turned into nothing but darkness. However, she wished that it could stay like that. Because after he was done talking…

He was screaming in agony as she heard the shredding of flesh…

"Honey, we're leaving from the back door! Let's go! Raphtalia, don't open your eyes, just hold onto your mother's hand!" And so, even if she had her eyes closed, she could feel the fear in her heart because she couldn't see anything. Even if she wanted to open them, she was going to be afraid of what she was going to see. Until then, she needed to keep holding onto her mother's hand until they were safe again…

* * *

How long has it been since I talked to them? Spending my weekend by myself wasn't helping in the slightest. Staying in a hotel for the time being so I could get away from them isn't helping my situation either. For how long must I continue to be like this? How long must I continue to be this… pitiful with myself?

*Ring!* Hearing the first ring, I automatically took out my scroll to see who was trying to contact me. If this was anyone else, I would've declined the call in a second. But this wasn't some random stranger who was calling me about a car or to see if this was the wrong number…

It was Pyrrha…

*Ring!* I was beginning to hesitate as my finger was slowly going to answer it. While my heart wants to answer it, my mind doesn't want to. I can't speak to her, not after what I've said to her. And so… my finger answered the call even if I was reluctant to do so.

"_Hello? Jaune, are you okay?" _This was definitely Pyrrha. The second I answered the call, I could hear the caring voice that was worried for my well-being. I know I shouldn't hide forever, but… I can't face any of my friends right now. It's… not the best time.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine. Look, Pyrrha, now's not the best time. We should just-"

"_Look, Jaune, you have to come talk with everyone about this… situation. Me, nor any of your friends want to see you like this. We can help you, Jaune, you just need to open yourself with everyone." _

"I… I can't do that, Pyrrha. I can't… bring myself to talk to them; not with what I've done." Fake Transcripts. Just thinking about them makes think of how much of a moron I am. Because I faked my way into Beacon, this was eventually going to come out to someone. Now, because I wasn't quiet, Cardin knows about them. Not doing what he wants will only make him upset and reveal those transcripts about me.

"_Yes you can, Jaune. Just talk to us all about it, and everything will become clear to them. They're all concerned, Jaune. Sometimes, you keep disappearing somewhere and we don't even know where you're going! You can't keep doing this, Jaune, this beginning to become childish!" _I can only imagine if there was anyone else with Pyrrha as she was screaming at her scroll. They would only stare at her with a concerned look probably.

"Childish? You want to know something about 'childish', Pyrrha? It's becoming the damsel in distress when you, and every one of my friends are risking their necks off and saving me! I'm tired, Pyrrha, I'm tired of being this… burden to you all! I want to be the hero that everyone can look at proudly! Sticking in the shadows won't help me become a better person, Pyrrha! You can't keep looking out for me like I'm not a child, and you're not my mother!"

There was silence in the call. Pyrrha didn't say anything, and I didn't either. Just thinking back to that day on the rooftop was starting to bring up anger that I didn't know I had within myself. I'll admit it, I didn't want to scream at her. Because I was… angry with myself I didn't think to notice how Pyrrha would feel about me screaming at her.

"Pyrrha, I'm sorry for screaming at you. Can you just… give me some alone time?" I wanted to get out of here. I… had to be somewhere else than here where I could just…

Be alone…

"_..." _Pyrrha didn't answer when I tried to apologize. I was concerned if she was angry with me so I looked to see if she was still in the call.

Turns out… she hung up.

Then, I found myself to be alone, once again…

And so, I find myself walking out of the hotel with no guide of where I'm heading to next. Maybe… getting some fresh air at the docks. Going there always kept my mind at ease. If I hadn't cheated my way to Beacon, where would I be at this day and age? Would I still be trying to become a hero? Or would I… give up on this dream?

Walking through the streets with my hood on wasn't new to me. If I kept my hood on, then people wouldn't have the time to even look my way. I just had to keep walking, and go to the docks so I could find some peace and quiet.

Looking out in the sea, I didn't really expect that much other than the cold sea. So, what could I do here so I could put my mind at ease? I'll… just stay here for a bit so I could… rest. As I walked closer to the water, I knelt down to the water to see the reflection of myself.

"Just by looking at you, I can tell that you're nothing worthwhile. You're no hero, you're just a fake." When I look at the man in the water, I could see nothing but a failure. He couldn't protect himself, and he couldn't protect his friends. Instead, I always attempt to do something that was worth anything, but in the end, I'm always behind them all.

I slapped the water, which did nothing in the slightest.

All that came to be, was the same failure that I had seen only a second ago. I hate myself for my weakness. I understood that it wasn't anyone else that was bringing me down. It was myself who constantly kept berating himself because he couldn't swing a sword correctly.

If only… there was someone under that reflection of myself that could help me become something more. No, this was childish now. There's no one inside the man that's being shown in the reflection.

My fingers gently caress the reflection, wanting to know more about him. Was he actually someone that had a dream to become a hero? Or was he some fake that couldn't do anything good in life? Who was actually the person in that reflection?

My fingers, and soon my entire hand was starting to dig in the water, reaching for something that wasn't actually there...

* * *

"Raphtalia, don't let go of my hand, okay?" She still kept her eyes closed as her father told her to do. How long were they going to keep running? She was starting to get tired, and she didn't want to hear the screams from others anymore. Their screams of agony was only fueling the fear within herself.

"...O-okay!" She felt the ground begin to shake as she didn't know what was actually causing the shaking. If she opened her eyes, then she would go against the words of her father, and that wasn't a good thing. Everything had come to a sudden as her and her family had stopped running. There were two things she was starting to hear:

The growling of something huge coming towards her…

And the water from the waves crashing below her...

"Raphtalia… are you okay?" Now that she stopped, her parents had the time to speak to her without having panic in their voice. Were they safe? Could she… open her eyes again so she could see her mother and father?

"Raphtalia… open your eyes." Hearing her mother's soothing and calm voice, she started to slowly open her eyes. They were safe, and everything was going to be okay. She would be able to see her mother and father in good condition.

As she expected, she was greeted with the sight of her mother and father…

Only for her father to be missing an arm…

And a monster that was glaring at them with the intention of not letting them escape…

"M-Mother?" Raphtalia's eyes were beginning to water. Everything that she was bottling up inside… was started to leak out from her eyes. She began crying because she was afraid…

"It's okay, Raphtalia. Everything is going to be fine. You… gotta go, Raphtalia." Hearing her mother's words, her eyes started to widen. What did she mean that she "had to go"? Is… her mother and father not coming with her?

"No! I want to stay with you! I don't wanna go! If I'm leaving, then I want to go with mother and father by my side!" Her mother, not having too much time left, hugged her. Her father also joined in the hug with his remaining arm left.

"I know, Sweetie. You… gotta be strong, you hear me? You survive, and find yourself in this cruel and harsh world, okay? You gotta be strong, Raphtalia. You're my daughter, right?" Raphtalia couldn't stop the water that was flowing down her face. All she could do was stare at her mother and father smiling at her as if there was nothing wrong.

The monster… was starting to approach slowly now…

"Raphtalia… one day, when you become older, you're going to learn the difference between what's right and wrong. When you become stronger, your… sword will be cut down any evil the approaches the world that you care for. When you find love, you're going to… understand that there is always someone out there who's willing to walk down your path with you. Good… luck, Raphtalia." Her father was starting to become pale now. The loss of blood was starting to get to him.

"No! I… don't wanna leave mother and father! I want to live with my family and grow older so I can tell all of the amazing adventures that I went on!" Her mother was starting to cry now. This… was going to be the last time she was going to see her daughter…

"Raphtalia… do you want to live?" Her mother asked, hugging Raphtalia even tighter.

"I do! If my family isn't with me, then what's the point of living?!" She hugged her mother as she didn't want to let go.

"Raphtalia, do you want to grow older and become stronger?" Her father slumped to the ground as he was starting to lose blood even more. Raphtalia could see her father's blood as it started to slide down the cliff that they were trapped at.

"Yes! But with-"

"Do you want to find love?" Her mother didn't want her to continue anymore. Just… one word from her daughter was enough…

"Yes!"

"Do you… want to live, Raphtalia?" Her mother asked her one final time as there was no time left. The monster was already closer than it was before, and it was ready to kill.

"Yes, I want to live and grow strong so I can protect my family!" After saying that, Raphtalia felt her body moving backwards. Feeling her mother's hand push her back, she looked at her with fear.

"Then… live, Raphtalia…" As she was beginning to fall to the water, Raphtalia could only see her mother smiling down at her as she waves goodbye to her daughter. It was a split second for her mother and father to disappear from her sight…

And what was replaced, was the blood of her parents, with only a three-headed dog monster staring down at her…

"NOOOOOO!" With that, she fell into the sea…

Starting to drown, she couldn't see anything but blue starting to cover her vision. She had to get back to the seashore. If she could do that then… she could live, right? She was going to be able to escape from the water's grasp so she could live…

Right…?

She extended her hand out, wanting to reach the shore, but to her avail…

She couldn't.

There was no shore, and there was no one there to save her…

Until… she felt someone's hand gripped hers as she was starting to be brought out of the water. Because of the water's pressure, she was starting to slip into unconsciousness. But before she could close her eyes fully…

She was able to see someone with blonde hair grip her hand, and began to bring her out of the water...


	2. Reality

**(A/N) **

**Thank you everyone for showing your support. I appreciate everyone's part in this story now that I feel refreshed when remaking this story. Some scenes might be the same, but I'm going to make sure I put in some more effort into the scenes so it looks like it isn't just random. Thank you, and I hope you all enjoy…**

**Oh, as a test, I'm going to show first person views from Jaune and Raphtalia. For the first two chapters, I want to know from you all if you favor the first person view for Raphtalia, or the third person view. Jaune will always remain first person, though. As for the rest of the cast… I don't know yet. **

Jaune

Blue…

That was all that could be seen from the water as my hand was stuck underneath the water...

My hand… it grasped something. Whatever it was… it was similar to someone's hand. Based on how soft and small their hand was, I could tell that it was a girl's hand. That… can't be right.

Why was there a girl in the water when she wasn't here before…?

As I pulled her out, I could see the soaking form that she had. The outfit she wore was soaked and… it didn't look familiar to any type of clothing that I see in this day and era. She wore a long-sleeved gray shirt and a black and red dress. Was she… a villager of some kind?

"H-hey, are you okay?" My initial response was to ask if the person that I saved was okay, but that wasn't actually a good thing to ask at first when said person was drowning in water.

As I laid her body on the docks, I started to press down on her chest to get the water from out of her lungs. Luckily, she wasn't in the water for too long because she was able to cough out the water easily. That's… that's good. More importantly, how did she even get here?

"Are… you all right? How did you… get here?" After the water came out, she was able to stop coughing and laid her head back onto the dock's flooring. She was a child, and I don't even want to begin to imagine how she ended up in the water. As she began to open her eyes, I could see her pink eyes looking straight back at me…

Why do they look like they've seen pain before…?

"Mo-Mother!" Starting to freak out, she got up and started to look up into the sky. What was she looking at?

"Mother… Father…! Don't leave me!" Whatever she was seeing, she started to run towards nowhere. Where was she going?!

"Hey, wait a second!" I started to chase after her, but all of a sudden, she stopped and continued to look towards the sky again. Realizing something, she dropped on her knees...

"Mother… Father… where are you? Where… are…" Catching up to her, I could see water dripping from her eyes and onto the floor. She… lost her parents, didn't she?

"Hey, it's… going to be okay…" I don't know what else to say to her. Because I didn't understand the pain of losing someone close to me, I can't say anything that was going to be comfortable for her to hear. She's a child that just lost her parents, what could I say to her?!

"No, it's okay, Mother! I can't… I can't leave you here!" She didn't hear me. All she could hear was what could have been her mother's last words before she… left. Walking a bit closer, her head automatically turned towards my direction.

I've never seen someone's eyes looked so… hazy before. She looked confused at first, but she started to walk towards my direction with a smile on her face

"Hey, everything's-"

"Father? Is it… you?" Father…? No, she must be going through some hallucinations or something like that. Whatever she saw before… must've triggered something in her mind to reject reality as it is right now.

Now… she sees me as her father…

"I'm… not your father." I… needed to give her the reality that she needed to hear. As… harsh as it was, I need to say it. If she continued with lies in her head, then she might not-

"Father… where's the monster…?" Monster? Was she talking about the Grimm? She must've been attacked by Grimm, her family must've been… wiped out.

"Look, I can take you to a hospital, we can-" I could see that she didn't have any scratches on her. There was nothing on her body that lead to me believing that there was a drop of blood on her body. Unscathed, unarmed, there's nothing on her that showed me that she was hurt…

But that didn't mean mentally…

"Father… how did you get your arm back on…?" Still, with those hazy eyes, she started to walk towards me. Her walking pattern was anything but straight. She was on the verge of collapsing at any second...

What… did she just say?

"Stop…" As she started to walk towards me, I started to walk towards her. A child like her to experience such pain was… sad.

"Father, is everyone in the village all right?" It was until we were closer, that she decided to hug me, thinking that I was still her father. I… wanted to hug her back and tell her that everything was going to be all right. There was no reason to cry anymore, she was going to be safe here…

But telling her that was going to be nothing but a lie…

I couldn't protect her, even if I did vow to protect her. I'm… weak. What good is it when a weak man who can't swing his sword properly? He can't even protect his teammates…

He couldn't even protect himself…

"Stop it, please. I'm… not your father." I didn't deserve to hug her back. I didn't deserve anything in respect to deserve a hug.

"Father, why do you look so sad? Is… everyone safe?" As she looked into my eyes, I could see the reflection of lost hope. Reflecting from those bright pink eyes of hers, I could see hazed azure eyes of what used to be filled with hope.

"I'm sorry, but I'm not your father…" She still continues to stare in my eyes as if I was still her father…

"Father, what are you-" When I look at her, all I could see is someone who's rejecting reality. There's no ounce of hope in her eyes that tells me that she's hoping that her parents are still alive. She clung to that hope and used that as an excuse to escape reality that she tries desperately to ignore. For some reason…

I can't help but envy her…

As it is reality, I can only hope that the reality that I've accepted was nothing but a lie. I want to imagine myself stronger than what I actually see myself. But then, that wouldn't help me grow. IfI force myself behind the wall of reality, then I wouldn't grow anymore. And because of that, I can only accept reality as it is now…

"Just… stop it! Wake up, I'm not your father!" I… didn't want to yell at her. She was a child that had just lost her parents and screaming at her wouldn't help in the slightest. It would only cause so much pain than what she's experiencing right now. Because… I don't want her to be like this; to be someone that ignores reality, I must do this. I must tell her the truth.

"You're… not? Where's… mother and… father?" As the truth was finally starting to come to her, her eyes started to widen. Even if she was trying to show some emotion, the hazed color in her eyes expressed nothing.

She's… broken.

"..." I didn't say anything. I _couldn't _say anything else more than what I had already said.

"Do you know where mother and father is?" She asks me this, wanting to know if I actually know where their at. Her voice was hopeful, but even then, the sad truth was going to harm her. This was something that I didn't want to say to a child who's rejecting reality like myself, that the truth was all you could bear.

"Their… at a place where the light shines the brightest." This... was the best I could come up with.

"Where's… that?" I could see the water starting to erupt from her eyes once again. Did she… already know where they were? I… think I should start to change the subject now. The more we linger on this subject, the more broken she will become.

"Hey, um… how about we go into the city and start exploring? There, I'll buy you anything that you want. How does that sound?" Okay, I don't want to completely ignore the current subject, but stalling until she feels a bit more comfortable would be nice. Kneeling down to meet her height, I smiled.

"The… city?" Oh, right, she might come from a village so she couldn't have experienced the city at all, maybe. Well, if this was going to be her first time in the city, then I gotta make sure that this was going to be her first experience yet.

"Yeah, the city! Turn that frown upside down because there, we can buy all sorts of things: toys, games and food!" I used my fingers to curve my lips upwards so I can show her how to smile. I'm not good at this, am I? I probably look like some sort of weirdo to her, don't I?

"..."She didn't say or react to what I said. She only stared at me with those pink eyes that was void of emotion. Yeah, I'm really not good at this. When I had to cheer up my little sister because of arguments, I found myself playing with her toys with her so I could make her feel happy. Sadly, this was no argument. This was about loss.

"...Are you a good person?" When she said that, I didn't understand what she meant by that. To her, a child, she had to get to the habit of not trusting others that she doesn't know. It makes sense because I'm just a random person who's asking her to go venture out into the city. Great, don't I feel stupid?

"I don't want to harm you. I know that you're feeling sad, but I want to make sure that you still have some heart in you to smile again. C'mon, anything that you want, I'll buy." I lent out my hand for her to take, but she didn't respond to it.

"...Anything… I want?" I don't want to sound like a weirdo, but yes, it worked! Hopefully, I'll be able to cheer her up! Well, I don't want to buy her everything she wants, but I guess it's too late for that, right?

"Yup, tell me what you want, and I'll buy it for you, is that okay? But, let's make sure that we don't burn out my wallet, okay?" She slowly nodded her head. Because of that, I placed my hand on her head and ruffled her hair a bit. Wait a second, I didn't notice this before…

She has racoon-like ears and a tail…!

She's... a faunus?!

"All right, scratch the previous plan," Standing up, I looked down at her with a serious face. After I said that, she looked at me with a confused look as she cocked her head to the side. "We're GOING to make sure that my wallet is empty today. ANYTHING that you want, we will do today." She continued to look at me with a confused look. Well, that doesn't matter…

A fanus who had lost her parents to Grimm…

Is something that I'm not going to ignore…

By the end of the day, I'm going to make sure that this girl is happy!

* * *

Raphtalia

Why… was this person being nice to me? I… don't even know his name and he… saved my life. Was he… a good person? If he saved my life, does that make him a good person? I… don't know. When I took his hand, I can feel the warmth from it. Now, he starts to guide me to… the city.

What… was this place? I thought… there was a town near my village. Is this… really a city? There's… so many people. When I look around, I could see different types of stores around with people entering them. In the middle of the city, I could see a road with… big objects going through the middle? I'm pretty sure I saw someone within one of those big objects that was slowly going the middle of the road. It had… wheels like from carriages, but it looks… different.

"So, you see anything you want?" The man who saved my life stared down at me with a smile. I wasn't paying attention to the stores so I didn't find anything that interested me. I… don't know what I should get at these stores…

"..." I didn't want to meet his eyes again. Even with that smile, I don't know if he's a good person. Mother and father… said to not trust others you don't know…

Mother… Father… where are you…?

"Not that much of a talker, huh? Don't be afraid, I promise that I'm harmless." I found this stranger strange, but he was… nice? I don't know why he's being nice to me, though…

"I don't know what to do..." After he let go of my hand, I clenched the bottom of my dress as I didn't know what to do. I was scared… I was nervous. I didn't know what to do in this situation. Should I run away? But I don't even know where I'm at. I'm sure that I'll get lost in the city...

"You sure? I'm sure there's something that you like. Um… maybe there's a toy or something like that?" We stopped as he began to look around the area to find something. I… don't know what kind of toys there are in the… city. How different were they compared to the ones that I had? I… used to play with a ball with…

Rifana-chan…!

Keel-kun…!

The monster… did it…

My head… it hurts…!

When I close my eyes… all I see is the-

"Hey, are you okay?" Opening my eyes, I can the man who saved my life in front of me with a concerned look on his face. Why… was he staring at me with those eyes…?

"...I wanna go home." His eyes widened at first, before becoming soft again.

"..." Why isn't he saying anything? Why was he looking at me with those eyes? Why does his eyes…

Look so sad…?

"...I'm sorry." Why was he sorry? What did he mean that he's sorry?

"...Didn't you say that anything I want, we'll be doing today? I… want to go home. Please… just take me home. I want to see my mother and father. I want to see my friends again…!" Mother always told me to be strong. When I had an injury, mother always told me to be strong. Because I was her daughter, I had to be strong…

I'm… not strong…

Not without mother and father...

"I… don't know where you came from. We're in Vale, so that does help with anything? Did you live anywhere close to here?" I don't understand. What's… Va...le? I… haven't heard that name before. Where is… Va...le?

"Va...le?" He looked at me with a confused look. Because I hadn't heard that name before, I couldn't pronounce it as well as he did. Looking around again, I looked at the stores again. Was… this place close to my village? What were those… carriages? It didn't even require a Filolial to move. When I noticed the store that was next to us, I saw something… it was a book.

"Hm? What's wrong?" The book was behind a window, so I couldn't open it and read it. In the corner of my eye, I saw the man look at the book, and then back at me. Putting a fist to his hand, he made an expression as if he just found something out.

"Oh! You want this book?" Looking at the back, I could see a man standing on top of a… black monster with a sword in the air. This… was like a book about a hero, right?

"..." I didn't say anything as I continued to keep staring at it.

"C'mon, let's go inside and get the book." Taking my hand again, we walked inside the store to purchase the book. But before we entered the store, I could see a note at the side of the door frame…

_Faunus always allowed! _

What's… a Faunus?

* * *

Jaune

"Welcome to Tuckson's Book Trade!" A man that wore a short-sleeved burgundy and black shirt with sideburns had greeted us when we came inside. I haven't been to this place to read books that much since Beacon already has a variety of books to read.

"Hello, I'm here to pick out a book for her." Shaking the man's hand, I looked around to see shelves of books all over the store. Well, it's expected because it's a bookstore.

"Oh? And what book did you have in mind?" Smiling while crossing his arms, I could tell that he was excited to know of the book that we had in mind. He must really like his job, doesn't he?

"Well, we saw it out in the front and it was… this one!" Showing the man the book that we had seen at the window on display, he instantly smiled.

"Ah, "Knight's Chivalry", huh? A story of a masked knight who fought for the sake for others and not himself, even if he was rejected by the world. I have to say, you really picked out a good one to read."

"Is that so? Well, it wasn't me who picked it out. My… friend's little sister did." As I said that, I showed the girl who was hiding behind me, only for her to hide behind me again. I find it very adorable.

"Your friend's little sister is a Faunus? Well, well, it's not everyday that I see a Human and a Faunus together. Oh well, since the two of you are my customers, why shouldn't I respect y'all decisions?" Wow. It's not everyday that I hear someone respecting Faunus. Especially not hearing them disrespecting Humans because they respect Faunus as their equal.

"Besides," As he opened his mouth a bit, I could see the fangs in his mouth extend downwards. "I _am _a Faunus who respects others decisions." A Faunus runs this store? Now that is something I didn't expect. Now that I think about it, he doesn't have any features that shows that he's a Faunus besides his teeth. Is that some kind of transformation or something?

"Thank you, honestly." I smiled as I was happy that there was someone who respects both sides. Even though there are some Humans that hate Faunus, there are also Faunus who hates Humans. It's a mutual hate on both sides of the story.

"No need, I'm just here to satisfy the customer. Now, let's hurry up and get the little lady this book. As much as I like to satisfy the customers, satisfying Faunus is something that I truly enjoy." With that, I paid for the book and gave it to the girl. Wait, I just realized that I didn't ask for her name.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" Even though we were still inside the store, I knelt down to meet her eyes. After giving her the book, she clutched it tightly to her chest as she didn't want to let go of it. Her eyes continued to look downward as she was still sad. I'm really not good with children am I?

"...I'm fine." Was she actually fine? I'm pretty sure she's not. Because of her sadness, I had to put mine to the side to make sure she's happy. I can't leave a Faunus child on her own to deal with loss alone. Deciding on taking her outside the store, she continued to look down at the floor, even if I had bought the book for her. Well, I guess I have to keep getting her stuff to make sure that she's satisfied.

"Hey, I don't believe that I asked you for your name. Can you tell me, please?" Kneeling down to meet her eyes, I could see the uneasiness in her eyes. I'm sure she doesn't trust me, even if I did promise to buy her things. Trust wasn't built on toys and money, it was built on friendship.

"...Raphtalia." When I heard her name, I smiled. At least she was beginning to open up a bit. Well, I think I should put a limit as to what toys or books that she might want. Instead of that, how about I try a different approach?

"Raphtalia, huh? Well, Raphtalia, my name's Jaune. How about we continue to venture out into the city?" She clenched her book even more, unsure on what she wanted to do now. Well, if she's tired, then I guess we're going to have to call it a day. She… might not have a place to stay so I guess I'll lend her my bed while I sleep on the floor in the hotel room.

"...It's cold." When Raphtalia said that, I just realized something: Raphtalia's clothes were still wet from the water! It wasn't easily seen from afar, but regardless, it was still wet. Great, it was going to be my fault that Raphtalia was going to catch a cold!

"Crap, we're going to have to get you some new clothes! Well, for now, wear this." Taking off my jacket, I put it over her body. To that, she looks at me with surprised eyes. Even if her eyes were still like that, they were starting to show some emotion now. I wonder how long it's going to take to make her… normal.

"Why…?" I'm sure she didn't understand my reasonings as to why I'm being nice to her, but there's nothing wrong with doing the right thing, right?

"It's not cold anymore, right?"

"...Yes."

"Ah, I guess the jacket doesn't help, does it?"

"...No." Ah, she was blunt with her words, wasn't she? Before I said anything else, I felt a ringing in my pocket. Taking my scroll back out, I looked to see who was calling me…

It was Pyrrha again…

I wanted to answer the call, but it was only going to bring out negative thoughts again. I appreciate the concern that my friends have for me, but I just need to be alone for now.

Texting her that I'm busy, I turned off my scroll and looked back at Raphtalia with a sad smile. Now's not the time to focus on myself right now. Right now, it's time to focus on Raphtalia's happiness.

"Raphtalia, let's make this day a fun day, okay?" Clenching the book harder, she stared at me with a calm expression.

"...Okay." I took her hand, and we began to walk towards anything that would keep our minds off of things. We both needed some sort of happiness in our lives. Raphtalia needs it more than me. If I could somehow heal her broken heart, then it would all be worth it. This was the start of the weekend for the both of us.

Sadly, we can't hide from the sad reality that we're living in...


	3. Returning Favor

**(A/N) **

**Sorry that this isn't a new chapter. I just wanted to fix some grammar mistakes. Next update will be up soon.**

"Mr. Jau...ne." As my eyes started to open, I was greeted with the sight of Raphtalia sitting on the floor while waiting for me to get up.

"Hm? Oh, morning, Raphtalia. Did you sleep well?" Sitting up, I could some pain in my neck. Oh, I'm guessing that I slept a bit poorly. Even with a pillow, the floor wasn't the best of places to sleep on.

"...Yes." I couldn't say if she was honest or not. The lack of emotion that she puts in her voice wasn't helping the slightest.

"That's good, we'll be heading out to get something to eat, make sure you're ready, okay?" By "make sure you're ready", I meant for her to take a shower and get dressed. Well, since it _was _a new day, hygiene is important.

"Mr. Jau...ne?" I see. She's still trying her best to pronounce my name. Well, John and Jaune sounds a bit close to one another, so I could understand the difficulty to say my name without saying it wrong.

"Yes?"

"What's… a hotel?" I see. Well, this was expected since she probably grew up in a village. The lack of knowledge of this place might be hard for her then. If she got lost, then who knows where she might end up. I can't risk leaving her to herself. I just gotta make sure that I have all eyes on her.

"Well, it's a place where you could stay for a limited time. We're currently in a hotel." Ever since Saturday, Raphtalia always ended up falling asleep when the sun starts to leave. I could say that _I _had fun during the weekend, but I can't say if Raphtalia had fun or not. For the rest of the weekend, we spent our time doing things that could possibly help us get our mind off of things.

Pointing out the clouds that look weird or funny, eating at a cafe, and I even got some clothes for her to try on like I promised. The person who helped Raphtalia was so keen on wanting her to try on the cutest things, but I had to say no to that. I think some shirts, a hoodie, and a skirt was what we needed for that time as I didn't want to spend all of my money.

We even had water ice that made us both have a brain freeze. While it was for a second, seeing another expression from her was worth it. As she grabbed her head after saying that it was hurting, I laughed because of how adorable she sounded.

And even with those moments, I don't see her smiling…

Now, since I have to go back to school tomorrow, what will Raphtalia do without me? Where will she even go?

"Mr. Jau...ne?" She calls me out again as I was lost in my thoughts.

"Yes, Raphtalia?"

"What's… that?" She pointed at the T.V screen as she asked me that. Hmm, life without television, I wonder how that would be?

"That, Raphtalia, is called a Television. In order words, it's called a T.V." Raphtalia, with her usual bland expression, cocked her head to the side as if she was confused.

"T...V?" I nodded my head as she pronounced it perfectly.

"Yeah, with the remote, you can turn it on," As I said that, I turned it on to show a woman that was going over the news. "And you can also turn the channels to show something that you might be interested in." After constantly changing the channels, I stopped on a cooking channel with a man who was busy getting prepared to show the people watching how to cook. Raphtalia started to walk towards the T.V with her hand extended as if she wanted to touch him.

"I… can't touch him?" After taking her hand away from the T.V, she looked at me with some sort of saddened look. That was only more adorable.

"You can't because it's only a screen, Raphtalia. While it does look real, they're not actually in front of you." She stared back at the television with a wondrous look. Well, at least showing her new things was getting something out of her. From my angle, I could see her tail wagging with interest.

Yup, definitely helping.

"Hey, Raphtalia." Upon calling her name, she stopped wagging her tail and turned to me.

"Yes, Mr. Jau...ne?"

"Could you… tell me about yourself? Like where you were born?" This was a topic I shouldn't bring up so casually. Because of the… incident, it might cause some bad memories for her.

"..." Raphtalia didn't answer me as she continued to stare at me with her dull look. Even if she was a child, I could feel her suspicion about me grow. I can't believe that I'm becoming nervous like this.

"W-well, if you don't want to talk about it, then it's fine. We should-"

"Mr. Jau...ne." Suddenly cutting me off, I became more nervous.

"Y-yes?"

"I… come from Rurorona Village. It was… filled with Demi-Humans..." Ru...ro...rona Village? Um, I think I can understand that the village was named from a different language or something like that. They way she easily pronounced that made me look like a child in her eyes. Demi-Humans? Is that something they called Faunus in their village?

"I-is that so? Well, Raphtalia, can you… tell me how it was in your village?" Keeping it slow is the best method of making one comfortable.

"...I loved my village. I loved the people who greeted me everyday when I'm going out to play. I loved my parents. I loved the smell of food in the morning when I wake up to another sunny day. I loved looking at the scenery of the ocean. I loved it when Father decided to read my favorite book when it was time to go asleep. I loved it when Mother taught me how to read. I loved it when Father taught me how to fish. I love… I love my parents and I… love my village!" She screamed at the top of her lungs as she finished explaining what she loved about her village. For each reason she loved her village, I imagined the sweet and refreshing time it could have been for her.

But… it's gone…

"Raphtalia…" The nails on my hands started to meet with the palm of my hands as I clenched tightly. It… was a cruel world because of the Grimm. Because of them, many children, family, and people, have no other place to go.

"Why… why did it have to happen to us? What did we do wrong that made us get punished? Why did Mother and Father have to die? Why couldn't I leave with them?" She started to clutch her head as if it was hurting. No, I shouldn't have brought this up. This was seriously bad.

"Raphtalia." I called her name, but to no avail, she didn't answer me.

"It was my fault that Mother and Father are dead, wasn't it? It was my fault because I couldn't fight back. It's my fault…"

"Raphtalia." Blaming herself? No, I'm not having any of that. She's blaming herself because she couldn't fight back. Self-loathing thoughts wasn't going to help. Just like me…

"My fault. It's my fault that everyone in my village are gone. It's my fault. It's my fault. It's my fault. It's my fault. I shouldn't even be here-"

"Raphtalia!" Grabbing her hands a bit roughly, I forced her to look at me. I wished to be a little more gentle, but I couldn't. Because I saw a bit of myself in her, I couldn't help but be a bit upset. I want her to wake up; make her see that it wasn't her fault that everyone she knew before was gone.

"Raphtalia, look at me, do you really think that your parents wanted you to fight the monsters by yourself? Even at your age, do you think that your parents thought you were ready to fight on your own?" It could've been me who could have been practicing at her age. My sisters started to train at her age, but not for me. I, for one, didn't show any potential for becoming a huntsman. My parents didn't want me to train because… they wanted to protect me. To me, they said that I was 'pure' and shouldn't taint my heart with the life of battle. Back then, I scoffed at that, not believing it was true. But since I'm here, the potential they didn't see in me became clear.

Even as a child, I dreamed of becoming a hero. But… for what purpose? Did I want to fight the Grimm to protect others from their wrath? Or did I want to become a hero because I wanted my parents to see that I wasn't weak?

Was my thoughts pure…?

Or was my dream foolish…?

Or were they just plain selfish…?

"...No." Raphtalia said as she tried to not look at me in my eyes. Just like hers, I was in a haze. Because of the lack of guidance and purpose, I couldn't figure out what I was doing in Beacon anymore. Why was I even fighting anymore? I had no one who can tell me what my purpose was. A bland dream like mine had no shine to the future…

"Look at me, Raphtalia. When the monsters came to your village, were you afraid of what could happen to you?"

"...Yes." Finally looking at me in the eyes, I could see her eyes begin to water. Was it because I pressuring her to answer me too harshly? Or was it because she was having a hard time accepting the truth?

"Did you want to live, Raphtalia?"

"Yes, but with my-"

"Did _you _want to live, Raphtalia? Your parents sacrificed themselves to save your life. They knew what they wanted to do in order for you to continue living. To you, and to me, they died as your heroes." Now, did _you _want to live, Raphtalia?" To that, her ears twitched. It was harsh, but truthful. I didn't know what exactly happened, but I could tell that her parents wanted her to live.

"...Yes." It was a whisper, but I could hear her clearly.

"What was that? I couldn't hear you, Raphtalia." I cupped my ear as if I couldn't hear her.

"...I want to live." She raised her voice a bit higher that time.

"Again, Raphtalia. Now, what do you want to do?"

"I want to live."

"Louder, Raphtalia. I'm having trouble hearing you. Some of the people downstairs are too loud. Say it louder so I can hear it from you more clearly." I lied. There's not a single person downstairs other than the person behind the counter.

"I want to live!" Okay, I think that was a bit _too _loud. I'm worried that the person behind the counter heard her to begin with. I don't want to be kicked out because Raphtalia screamed "I want to live!".

"Then live, Raphtalia. Even with your parents gone, you have to remember that they wanted you to continue living. That was their wish, and you should grant it." She nodded after wiping her eyes from the tears that was built there. I… really didn't have the intention of making her cry.

"Mr. Jaune?" When I looked into her eyes again, I could see… some color in her eyes again. Was she… becoming better now? And… she actually said my name!

"Yes?" Without giving me a warning, she hugged me. I was shocked enough to want to know why. Should I hug her back? I… really didn't do that much

"Thank you." I couldn't see her face because it was buried in my shirt, but I somehow had the feeling that she was smiling.

"Huh?"

"Thank you for taking care of me, thank you for buying me food to eat, thank you for buying me new clothes to wear, thank you for giving me a place to stay, thank you for making me feel better, and thank you… for saving my life. You really are a good person." After saying that, she looked up at me with a smile on her face. While I was proud to say that I called it, but for some reason, when she said those words, I… felt relieved.

"_Thank you… for saving my life." _

Was this… the first time I heard those words from somebody…? Without wielding a weapon, instead of putting my useless life on the line, someone had said to me that I saved their life. When those words continue to rewind in my mind…

I felt happy…

"Mr. Jaune…?" Returning the hug, I held her tightly. I didn't know why, but I felt water build in the corner of my eyes.

"_Thank you… for saving my life." _Words that I never thought I would hear from someone, continued to play and play again. For once, I didn't feel useless. From throughout my life, I felt that I was hindering everyone from moving on because of how weak I was. Always needing someone to hold my hand, always needing help to get back up, but now, I managed to save someone's life on my own.

And for that, I'm truly happy…

"Thank you, Raphtalia." After hugging her, I wiped my eyes and patted her head. She looked to be confused as to what she did to earn it, but she smiled regardless of the reason. That's a smile that is worth being protected. She helped me in more ways than one, anyway. Even if it was for a few days, I felt like we spent a week together.

*Knock* *Knock*

Uh-oh. I might seriously be in trouble now. I'm hoping that I'm not going to get kicked out now. Looking at Raphtalia, I could understand her confused expression. Well, she might not understand who this person might be, I for one, know who this could be. Opening the door, I never expected it to be the one person that I was afraid of…

"So this was where you've been, Mr. Arc?"

Headmaster Ozpin. I… never expected him to be out of his office. Why was he even here to begin with?

"H-Headmaster Ozpin? W-why are you here?" Scared? Yes. Nervous? Yes. I mean, why wouldn't I be scared? This was the man who was in charge of the school for all my sake? One wrong move and I'll be out of his school in no time!

"Well, I should be asking you the same thing, Mr. Arc. It's Monday, why aren't you with your team in classes? While it is the teacher's concern to wonder about their student's whereabouts, _I _chose to come out and speak with you myself." Crap, I was too busy trying to make Raphtalia feel better, that I forgot that Monday was a school day. Honestly, it was hard for me to answer him. If I told him the reason as to why I'm here, then he'll kick me out. That's right, other than Raphtalia, he doesn't know of my false transcripts. Because of how real they might've been, he accepted them without hesitation.

"Oh? And who is this, Mr. Arc?" Walking into the room, Headmaster Ozpin could see Raphtalia's poking from the side of the bed. As Raphtalia came out to peek, she quickly hid herself from Headmaster Ozpin's view. Even if she did feel a bit better, it was going to be hard for her to trust anyone other than myself.

"That's… Raphtalia." I answered his question, but I was afraid as to how he would respond.

"May you please explain, Mr. Arc? It's not making sense that you would rather spend your time playing with a young Faunus, rather than being in school." Even if he puts it like that, I don't feel guilty.

"She… lost her family to Grimm and I didn't want to leave her alone…" It was half of the truth, but to explain to him that I found her at the docks after the water started to glow blue, then he might call me crazy.

"I see. Good work, Mr. Arc."

"What?" Honestly, I was confused as to why he said that. I haven't gotten praised by him before so it feels weird.

"You chose to help someone that was in need, Mr. Arc. That, Mr. Arc, is the first thing that is needed to be put as a priority before anything else when you're out in the field hunting Grimm. I will neglect the fact that you skipped out your first class today."

"T-thank you, Headmaster Ozpin."

"Now, for the topic at hand, Mr. Arc." Headmaster Ozpin turned to me after he realized that Raphtalia had no intention of coming out. As he turned, the cane that he had in his hand made a small tap on the floor that made me tense up. Even with his face calm, the air in the atmosphere was starting to make it hard for me to breathe. Since the Headmaster was here, then it just _had _to be serious.

"W-what it is, Headmaster Ozpin?"

"Why, your fake transcripts of course." He… he knew about my fake transcripts? No. No. No. No. No! I'm.. going to be kicked out of school, right? Because of my envious want to become a hero without any training, I had managed to get my hands on some fake transcripts. I went against the law. I… broke the law and this was my consequence. Was I going to be put in jail? Just like that, my breathing started to become out of control.

"Calm down, Mr. Arc. Whatever you're thinking about, I can reassure you that I am not here for those specific reasons." I calmed down to get control of my breathing.

"T-then… why are you here?" It was a question that I wanted to be answered ever since he greeted himself when I opened the door.

"Mr. Arc, I've known of your fake transcripts since the very beginning. Now, why do you think that I still chose to allow you into my school, Mr. Arc?"

"I… don't know." It was an honest answer. I wouldn't know what's going on in Headmaster Ozpin's head. He's a mystery to everyone, including the teachers…

"You don't know?" With a raised eyebrow, it was like he expected me to answer with something that could be close to wisdom.

"I don't even know why I'm still fighting, Headmaster Ozpin. You know that I don't have any training, so you understand where I'm coming from, right? There's… no reason for someone like me to belong into one of the most prestigious schools, right?" Headmaster Ozpin was silent at first, but he then decided to speak again.

"...Mr. Arc, I will be sending you and _only _you, to complete a task for me. If you want to remain in my school, then you must complete it. No, scratch that, I want you to complete two separate tasks for me." He ignored my… speech for whatever reason and chose to give me a mission instead? What was he actually thinking, right now? Does he… even care about someone like me? Was I… just a nobody to him? Even if I was a student in his school, does he not see me?

"What do you-" I stopped when he raised a finger up.

"Your first objective: is to deal with as much Boarbatusk as you can. I want a minimum of 20 tusks from them by the end of the week, Mr. Arc." He wants me to go after Boarbatusks? Wait, for what reason? They might be the most smallest Grimm that I've encountered, but why does he want me to kill them?

"Wait, but for what-" I stopped again after he raised another finger.

"Your second objective: is to find your purpose, Mr. Arc. Find the reason why you must fight, Mr. Arc. For that, will be the reason as to why I shall allow you to remain in my school. That is all." With that, he walked out the door.

"Wait!" He stopped to turn around to me. As we were in the hallway, I didn't care if someone heard our conversation.

"Is there something else, Mr. Arc?" I wanted to know the reason why he wanted me to remain in his school. There has to be something, right? From the initiation to now, I want to know what's been going through his head. How long has he been analyzing me to come down with the solution of letting me stay? Was it pity?

But then, what came out of my mouth wasn't neither of those things I had in mind…

"What about Raphtalia? I can't just leave her here!" That's right. I was concerned for Raphtalia's life rather than my own. The whole reason why I'm still in Vale is because of her. For someone who was bound to get neglected from others because of the features she was born with, had lost her family. Then, I made her happiness my priority instead of my own.

"She is allowed to stay with me in Beacon until I come up with a solution as to where she will be allowed to stay at. Remember, Mr. Arc, _only _you are allowed to participate in this mission. While I did speak with your team about this, Ms. Nikos was keen on the idea of letting you handle this on your own." Pyrrha… wanted me to do this on my own? Is it… because she's angry with me?

"I-"

"No!" Raphtalia's raised voice had managed to grabbed both of our attentions.

"Raphtalia…?" Raphtalia came from the side of the bed, and ran towards me and stood next to me to speak with Headmaster Ozpin. Eventually, she ended up hiding behind me.

"I… don't want to leave him alone!" Raphtalia made an angry expression at Headmaster Ozpin.

"And why is that, Young Raphtalia?" As Headmaster Ozpin knelt down to meet her height, he asked her this out of curiosity. I was also curious as to why she didn't want to leave with Headmaster Ozpin. I mean, I know he's scary and mysterious at times, but he's giving her a place to stay.

"He… helped me when I was in trouble! He made me feel happy… even if I lost my parents. Because he decided to stay by my side and not let be by myself, I want to stay at his side! I'm not leaving him to fight any monster on his own! I can't lose someone who went out of their way to bring me happiness!" It is to say that I'm really shocked and happy at the same time as to what Raphtalia just said. Even if she did want to help me, she had no experience on the field against Grimm. I… can't bring myself to bring her along with me. It's too dangerous.

"...Young Raphtalia, do you know how to hold a weapon?" His question might be a bit harsh, but it's something for her to understand.

"No, but… I'll try to! I want to learn how to fight so I won't be helpless any longer! I'll grow strong and become a hero for everyone to rely on!" A hero, huh? I felt like I said something close along those lines when I was younger…

"Is that so? Hmm, what about the Grimm that you'll encounter? What will you do if you don't have enough power to go against any odds? What if people won't accept you for who you are because you're a Faunus?" Raphtalia flinched when he said the last part. Maybe in her village that she learned that the Faunus wasn't treated evenly as humans?

"Then… I'll show everyone how strong I'll become to show them that not everyone is as it seems." It wasn't a glare that she showed Headmaster Ozpin. No, it was the look of someone who was determined for greatness. She'll… grow strong, won't she?

"...I like that, Young Raphtalia. Even if someone thinks otherwise, you must remain resolute with your goals. Young Raphtalia, if you so choose to stay at Mr. Arc's side, then I won't stop you." Standing back up, he looked straight back at me.

"Mr. Arc, I bid you farewell and good luck on your journey. I will exclude you from classes this week, so you best start prepping for what's to come." He started to walk towards the staircase as he was about to leave.

"Wait," Again, he stopped to look at me again. "Why? Why do you still want me in your school?" To this, he continued to stare at me as if he was thinking of something to say to me.

"Mr. Arc, even children can become adaptive to their situations. There's nothing wrong with starting out small, Mr. Arc. You just need to figure out what 'small' means to you." With that, he left.

"Is he… gone?" I looked down to see Raphtalia coming from behind me.

"Yup. He's strange, isn't he?"

"Yes." When we looked at each other, Raphtalia started to smile. I couldn't believe that I was actually getting a chance to prove my worth! Wait, I just realized something: he basically hinted that I was a child, didn't he? I don't really understand Headmaster Ozpin. As I looked down to Raphtalia's smiling face, I wondered if I actually was a child. Without a purpose, without a goal, I have to make one up of my own again. But then, what should it be then?

Only time will tell...


	4. My Shield's Ready To Protect

Weapon shops were easy to go by. For hunters and huntsman in training, they don't need to visit the weapon shop often because they already had the essentials they needed when going out to fight the Grimm. However, for someone like me, I was going to need to visit the weapon shop a bit more often.

"All right, Raphtalia, see something you like?" When we entered the weapon shop to find a weapon and some gear for Raphtalia, we were both amazed as to how many weapons that were on display.

"Um…" Nervous, she looked around to see the weapons she could possibly use to fight against the Grimm. Pretty much, nearly everything in the weapon shop was going to be too heavy for her to carry.

"Hmm, maybe we should start with something light for you to carry? Hmm, how about a dagger? Or maybe a bow? Oh, there are some guns too! What do you think, Raphtalia?" Looking back at Raphtalia, I could see swirls circling in her eyes. I'm sorry, but how is she doing that?

"T-too much!" Raphtalia closed her eyes as she wanted the swirling to stop. Oum, must she be _that _adorable?

"Now, how can I help the two of you?!" A man, who wore a black-like collared shirt with messy blonde hair greeted us from behind the counter. He looked cheerful and friendly. I hope he doesn't mind a Faunus being here. We might've been lucky at the bookstore, but I can't trust a majority of the other stores. I'm going to have to make sure I read the signs on the doors. It's a shame that all people alike can't see eye-to-eye.

"We were just looking for some gear for my… friend's little sister, here. She wanted to get some experience in the field." Showing Raphtalia, I was starting to become a bit more nervous. I heard of people who really don't appreciate the Faunus. People like Cardin… should just leave them alone.

"A… Faunus, huh? What do you think can happen if I didn't _want _to serve Faunus?" Upon hearing 'Faunus', the man's friendly expression dropped down automatically. I… knew that this was eventually going to happen. Great, are we going to be forced out, now? I mean, there are other weapon shops in Vale, but I wanted to come here because it was known for its popularity. Looks like I didn't dig deep enough to know if he supports the Faunus or not.

"Mr. Jaune?" Without even looking at her, I could feel her saddened look. This was one of the many things that the Faunus have to go through because of racism. It… upsets me a bit. As I said before, I'm making Raphtalia's happiness my first priority.

"...I know you might hate the Faunus, and you might not want to serve them, but understand that we are your customers. In your shoes, the customers satisfaction is _your _first priority. There shouldn't be a limit to that because of racism. You can either-" I stopped when I saw the man pinch the bridge of his nose.

"Oh, boy. Thank you, Oum, for blessing this child to me!" Um… what? What exactly is he talking about? Confused, Raphtalia cocked her head to the side to express her confusion.

"...I'm confused?" Like Raphtalia, I cocked my head to the side.

"Blondie, do you know how many people kept suggesting to leave when I said that? I had to quickly change my mind when I heard that they wanted to leave. Blondie, I don't hate Faunus, I was just testing you if you had a backbone or not." This man… is weird. Does he not know that he's blonde as well? But even so, I'm glad that he doesn't hate Faunus.

"What do you mean by 'backbone?'"

"Well, Blondie, you care about Faunus as people, right? Then there you have it. You see, I'm hoping to see a world where we are all alike. A world where there is no more… racism! If there was at least one person who sees us as equals, then that world might come soon. I was longing for someone who sees everyone as equal beings, and turns out, you ended up being the person that I wanted to hear it from. That, Blondie, is a person that I can truly respect." So… he provokes anyone who comes to his store… to gain some insight of how people feel about one another? I can't say that if it's a stupid plan or…

"I-I see. Um, what does that mean to me exactly?" So... what happens next?

"Right, right, you said that wanted some gear for the little girl, correct? Well, I never thought that I'd see a Human and a Faunus together! You just might be the person I was looking for!" Yeah… I just want to take the gear and leave this place. He's starting to creep me out a bit.

"Right. So, what do you think she can use to fight the Grimm?"

"Hmm, since she's small and inexperienced, maybe a dagger will do? Even when young, because of a Faunus' animalistic traits, they're more than likely to be faster than an inexperienced Human." When I listen to this man, I couldn't help but appreciate the fact that we think alike. Raphtalia could only stare at us as she was waiting for a weapon to use.

"Then we'll have a dagger, please." Okay, I'm going to trust his gut on this. Since Boarbatusks are easier to kill, they can be used as easy practice for Raphtalia. If I remember correctly, a Boarbatusks weakness is its underbelly.

"All right, then. While this thing can kill Grimm, it can't do that much damage to really strong Grimm like an Ursa Major. Be careful, and come back alive, you hear?" As he gave me the dagger, I noticed that he didn't ask me for the money that was required for it.

"Wait, how much does this cost?" I asked while pulling out my wallet to get the remaining amount of money I had left. Great, I might not have enough for a breastplate for Raphtalia. All I could get was the dagger.

"It's on the house. Since you gave me some spectacular insight, I'll give this to you for free. But _only _for this weapon, you hear? Everything else is going to have to be paid."

"No, seriously, I can purchase it. Tell me the price and I'll-"

"Blondie, it's free."

"But I should pay for it, though."

"It's. Free. Blondie." His voice was starting to become a bit more menacing now. Gulping, I sheathed the dagger and gave it to Raphtalia.

"Um, thank you for everything, then. We'll be taking our leave." With that, I took Raphtalia's hand and started to walk towards the entrance.

"Oh, and before you leave, I want to give the little lady a tip with the dagger!" Coming from behind the counter, he walked towards Raphtalia, who decided to hide behind me again.

"Okay, remember well because if you forget, then you're going to be in trouble. When you're using a dagger, speed is essential. You want to get in and out as fast as you can. When you see an opening, thrust to finish it off." Dagger tips, huh? That might come in handy. With that, I thanked him again, and started to walk out the door.

" And no, thank _you_, for everything, Blondie! Do be sure to come again!" He waved us off as we opened the door to leave. Well, I don't know if I'll be coming back anytime soon. He's a good guy, but I want Raphtalia to get a weapon that can kill any type of Grimm. His weaponry might not help when we face something that's more of a threat than a Boarbatusk.

"Ah! E-excuse me!" As we walked outside, suddenly, Raphtalia accidentally bumped into someone who had this… weird white cloak on. Because he or she had it on, I couldn't guess what gender that was behind the cloak. After bumping into them, it looked like they dropped something onto the floor…

It was a book…

"Excuse me, you dropped-" As I picked it up and stood back up, the person was already gone. Was it me, or was there a whole lot more people walking around? Because of the people who walked in that person's direction, I couldn't see them anymore.

"Mr. Jaune, is that a book?" Raphtalia asked, after I stopped looking for the person who dropped the book. As I looked at the front cover, there was some sort of symbol that was etched onto it.

"Yeah. The person you bumped into accidentally dropped it. Now, they walked off without realizing that I have it."

"Why not open it? It might have the person;s name on it!" Hmm, Raphtalia might be right. If someone left their book somewhere, then it makes sense that they put their name on it just in case of situations like this. As I opened it, there was one problem stood in the way:

I can't understand the lettering of the book…

"Um…" I started to flip through some pages to see if there was at least one page that was English, but it turns out, it was the same lettering. It has to be some kind of language, right?

"What's wrong, Mr. Jaune?" Looking down at Raphtalia, her tail starts to wag in curiosity. Well, she always seemed to like books, so why not? I doubt that she'll be able to understand it, but at least it's worth a try.

"Well, I can't exactly read it because it's in a different language. Wanna try reading it?" Speeding the pace, the tail is now wagging uncontrollably.

"I can?!" At least she's excited, though. As she takes the book from my hand, she opens it to read the first page.

"The… Four Cardinal Heroes?!" Out of shock, she screamed out loud. Wait, she can read the book? So… this book must've come from her village, right? If she knows the language, then the person who dropped the book must've came from there!

"What's… "The Four Cardinal Heroes"?" I'll admit, it sounds like a cool name for a group of heroes who banded with one another.

"These were the heroes that my Father and Mother used to tell me about! "Each hero each wields a distinctive weapon: a sword, a shield, a bow, and a spear." Yes, these _are _the heroes that my parents told me about!" Distinctive weapon for each hero? Well, that might be a bit crazy. Plus…

"How can a shield be a weapon? I mean… isn't it like a piece of armor?" Looking up from the book, Raphtalia pouted. Was… she upset that I said that?

"While I did hear about the other heroes, the Shield Hero is the person that I want to meet! My parents told me that long ago, the Shield Hero wanted to bring peace with everyone in the society! That even includes Humans and Demi-Humans!" "Long ago"? I… haven't heard of the Shield Hero before. Plus, he seeked to have everyone as equals? That person should be famous then, right? How come I heard of something like this before?

"Hmm, what else does it say?" Walking behind Raphtalia to see the book myself, she started to skim past the pages.

"Well, there's only some boring stuff about the other heroes. I just want to know of the tales of the Shield Hero!" Huh, I guess she _only_ cares about the Shield Hero, then? Oh well, it makes for a kid like her to want to know of the person who wanted peace with everyone. As she turned to a page of where it was titled "The Shield Hero", Raphtalia became excited and turned the page…

"The Shield Hero, huh? I wonder what kind of person he is in his stories?" I was also a bit curious to know of the stories of the Shield Hero. Like where was he born, or what caused him to be a hero? But...

Huh…?

There's… nothing there?

"Why… isn't there anything here?" Raphtalia asked, as she continued to flip the pages to find _something _about the Shield Hero. But as each page she passes, there was nothing there.

"That's… strange. Why isn't anything here? Here, let me see." As anxious as she was, she still handed me the book. Now, as I turned the pages, there was _still _nothing there. Even if I couldn't read it, I hoped for at least _something _to be here.

"Sorry, Raphtalia, looks like the person who wrote it didn't have the chance to finish the book." As I put the pouch that I bought from a few days ago, I patted Raphtalia's head.

"That's not fair. How come they finished the other heroes tale, but not the Shield Hero's?" I patted her head some more as she pouted more.

"Don't know. Maybe we'll find the person who dropped it and ask if they know. Come on, let's hurry and get these tusks. The faster we do it, the more time we have this week."

"Okay…" With that, we headed towards the place that I did not think of going back to...

* * *

The forest wasn't really the best of places to go. Especially when you're going out to practice fighting Grimm. Venturing into Emerald Forest is an example of something dangerous that shouldn't be done without a supervisor. Sadly, this was the only place I could think of to go fight and kill Boarbatusks. Since they take a bit of inhabitants here, this could be an easy mission.

But then again, there are also different types of Grimm that venture out here, as well…

Imagining ourselves to fight against a Nevermore was not happening. Anything bigger than a Boarbatusk is an automatic no…

"Are you nervous, Raphtalia?" When we first stepped into Emerald Forest, I noticed that Raphtalia started shaking. I don't know if bringing Raphtalia was the wisest of decisions. But… she chose to come here and fight with me. But then again, I couldn't live with myself if Raphtalia dies out here because I was too weak to protect her.

"...Yes." She knew what she was getting into, and still chose to stay and fight with me.

"I'm… nervous as well, to be honest." I _was _nervous about the Grimm that I'll encounter, but I'm more nervous of Raphtalia's safety.

"Mr. Jaune?" Raphtalia asked me, still shaking because she was afraid of what was to come.

"Yeah?"

"Why… don't you have a weapon?"

…

…

Did I… seriously forget something _that _important…?! Great, how am I going to protect her, if I don't even have a weapon?! Why the hell did I agree to take the mission, I _didn't _have a weapon?!

Before I could say anything to her, I heard something flying up above me, so I looked up. It was… black but it looked like something was flying towards us. I'm… pretty sure it looks familiar, too. Was that… a locker? Wait, it's about to land!

"Raphtalia!" As I quickly grabbed Raphtalia to move out of the way, the thing that was flying in the sky had landed in front of us. Steaming from it's travels, it opened up to reveal my gear that I left at Beacon.

"W-what is that?" Raphtalia, scared beyond belief, hid behind me. As cool as it was, it still scares Raphtalia because she's not used to modern technology.

"That's… my gear." And indeed it was. This was the same locker that I had left my stuff in. Who would've known that the locker that they provided us, was a means to travel? It looks like I have to thank Headmaster Ozpin for the save. As I went to grab my weapon and breastplate, Raphtalia quickly ran to find another hiding spot. After that, the locker closed and fly to the sky again.

"Well, that was surprising." Raphtalia nodded, before coming out from her hiding spot. Putting the breastplate on, I unsheathed Crocea Mors. Now, I'm ready to fight some Grimm. Hopefully, we won't encounter some huge Grimm along the way.

"Mr. Jaune!" Coming out of my thoughts, I looked back at Raphtalia, only to see that she was on her rear with a frightened expression on her face.

***Growl!* **Looking at the source of the growl, I could see a Boarbatusk coming from out of the bushes to greet us with its sharp teeth. Was the locker loud enough that nearby Grimm heard it? If that is, then this might be a huge problem!

"Raphtalia, you need to move, now!" While Raphtalia was still scared, the Boarbatusk charged at her with its tusk. Without thinking, I rushed between them with my shield raised up. As its tusk collided with my shield, I could feel the strength that it relied on to take out any enemy they encounter. Those things were actually really dangerous!

"Raphtalia, are you okay?!" As I looked back at Raphtalia, I could still see her frightened face. Did… something trigger when she saw the Grimm?

"Raphtalia, you have to snap out of it!" As I felt the Boarbatusk move away from my shield, I looked back at it to see that it was gaining some space for some reason. Unless…!

Without any warning, the Boarbatusk started to turn itself into a wheel as it was about to roll towards me. If I step out of the way, then it's probably going to hit a tree and fall on its back but…

"Raphtalia, when it falls on it's back, strike it's belly, all right?!" As I yelled at her, it broke her out from whatever trance she had. Slowly nodding, she took out the dagger that I bought earlier on in the day and took a stance. If I moved, then Raphtalia was going to get hit by the Boarbatusk. That. Can't. Happen! If it's coming at me with that kind of speed, then if it comes to a stop, then it's bound to fall on it's back. All it needs is to hit something!

"Raphtalia, stay behind me and don't move away. I'm going to rush at it with my shield and you'll take the opportunity to move away as soon as we are about to collide with it to stab it on its stomach, all right?!" She nodded again, but she still looks scared. We're… going to have to risk something like this, right?

As expected, it rolled towards us with inhuman speed…

"Raphtalia!" I raised my shield and started to rush at it. If this works, then it'll be like hitting a brick wall… on both ends.

"O-okay!" Sticking to what I said, she was running behind me and waited for the perfect time to strike. As soon as it lands on its stomach, then she kills it.

"HAAAA!" With my shield raised up, I was prepared to stop it by all means necessary.

"HAAAAA!" With her dagger, she charged in with me as she ran close behind me. As we both charged at the spinning Boarbatusk, we let out our war scream. After that, it only took a couple of seconds before I collided along with it.

5…

4…

3…

2…

1…

Wham. And just like that, I was sent flying to a nearby tree with a thud…

* * *

Raphtalia

"Mr. Jaune!" After moving out of the way before Mr. Jaune hit the spinning monster with his shield, I was concerned to see if he was all right. He's… not hurt, right? He's… not going to die like Mother and Father, right?

"Raphtalia, now!" As I heard Mr. Jaune's voice again, I felt relieved. Looking back at the non-spinning monster, I could see it on its back as it tries to get back up on its feet. It's… on it's side now! I have to hurry!

'_When you're using a dagger, speed is essential. You want to get in and out as fast as you can. When you see an opening, thrust to finish it off.'_

As I remembered that strange man's advice, with closed eyes, I rushed towards the monster with my hands on the dagger and thrust it towards the monster's stomach. As I felt the dagger go in, I opened my eyes to see the dagger stabbing the monster. As it screamed in agony, it started to fade away, only for its pointy objects to be what's left of it. Did I… do it? I… killed my first monster! I… I did it!

"Mr. Jaune!" Remembering that Mr. Jaune was hurt, I looked back to see if he was okay. As soon as I noticed that he was standing and not harmed. I'm… relieved!

"Nice work, Raphtalia! See, I knew you could do it!" As Mr. Jaune smiles at me, he started to pat my head. As he continued to pat my head, it felt as if Mother and Father were praising me again. Were they… still watching me? If Mr. Jaune's proud of me, will they be too?

'_To you, and to me, they died as your heroes…' _

Thank you, Mr. Jaune…

Thank you for being proud of me…!

Feeling the tears in my eyes begin to downpour, I hugged him. He's helped me throughout the time I was lonely. Because of him, I'm able to do something right with the life that my parents had granted me. Because of him, I'm… able to start my adventure.

"Raphtalia, ready to go after some more, Boarbatusks?" Looking up at him with my teary eyes, I nodded my head as I was ready to fight once again. This was the day that I fought and killed a monster…

And I won't ever forget it…

Thank you… Mr. Jaune.

* * *

Jaune

"Eat this!" As this was like the… 9th one that we killed, I collected its tusks and placed them into the pouch. Because they drop two of them, all we needed to kill is 10 of them. It's really lucky they become smaller pieces of the tusks they usually have. We went deeper into the forest to find more Boarbatusk, which took a few hours to find, and we were actually very lucky to not encounter anything else but Boarbatusk. Were the other Grimm sleeping or something?

"Mr. Jaune, the last one went into that cave!" Raphtalia pointed to the cave where I could see the Boarbatusk retreating to, and to that, I just wanted to scream. Finding _one _Boarbatusk took a whole lot of time in our hands. Traversing through the forest without any Grimm around was… starting to get boring. It's like the other Grimm _wanted _to hide so we could find Boarbatusk. Since they're scouted throughout the forest, it was really a problem. I'm just glad that we're safe.

"What?! Oh, come on, seriously?!" Remembering back to initiation, I shivered remembering the Death Stalker that was laying dormant in there. I don't _want _to go in there, but we could at least try to find the Boarbatusk before it goes in deeper. It… could be a in-and-out kill, right? Or… maybe we shouldn't. Just to be safe, we should probably continue looking for them.

"Raphtalia, let's just continue looking for them outside the cave. It'll be a lot more safer, wouldn't you agree?" I started to walk away from the cave, only to realize something:

…

Why didn't Raphtalia answer me…?

"Raphtalia?" Looking back, I couldn't find Raphtalia anywhere! She wasn't hiding behind the trees, but then again, why would she hide away from me?! Wait, she didn't…!

The cave…!

"Raphtalia!" Without thinking, I ran straight into the cave to find her. Crap, why did she go after the Boarbatusk without thinking?! Don't tell me she went in here thinking that she quickly take it down! Who knows what sorts of Grimm could be sleeping in here?! As I continued to go deeper in the cave, I could see… blue crystals that was lighting up the entire cave. I didn't know what they were, so I paid them no mind.

"Raph-" Before I could finish screaming Raphtalia's name, all of a sudden, something purple that covered the entire walls of the cave went passed me. Because of that, I started to feel a bit nauseous. It was like I just got off a Bullhead!

"Raph...talia!" Screaming out her name again, I stood back up and started to walk a bit further. I wanted to ignore the nauseous feeling I had, but it was stopping me from going into a sprint. What the hell was that?!

"NOOOO!" That… was Raphtalia! What the hell was going on?! Did she encounter a Grimm?! Raphta… please be okay!

"Raphtalia!" As I finally reached the depths of the cave, I was finally able to see Raphtalia. She was on her rear as she was looking at something that was scaring her. Because of my angle, I couldn't see what she was seeing. Was it another Death Stalker?! As I moved a bit forward…

What… the hell is that…?!

It was… a three-headed giant dog! Why… why the hell was this kind of thing doing a place like this?! No, forget that, why... THE HELL DOES THAT THING EXIST?!

"G-GET AWAY FROM ME!" As Raphtalia tries to crawl away from the three-headed dog, it started to get closer to her as saliva came out from all of its mouthes…

Wait, Raphtalia was at the ledge! Ready for its kill, the three-head monster raised its giant paw, and prepared itself to strike down Raphtalia. I… had to move! Now!

And so, I started to run towards Raphtalia without thinking straight. What was there to think of? If I stood there to think of a plan, then Raphtalia would already be dead. I… had no plan. I didn't even think to bring my shield up to block its attack…!

The world started to move slowly. As I found myself to be at Raphtalia's side, I could already see the three-headed dog's paw in the corner of my eye. I… had no time to block it! So, doing the only thing I could do, I activated my aura, and held Raphtalia close to me.

Silence was all I heard as I felt a sharp pain on my back...

And just like that, I was looking up the three-headed monster as we both began to fall down from what seemed to be a cliff. Even in a cave, it was able to have the geography of a cliffside?

Was… this really going to be my end…?

For someone as useless as me; someone who couldn't save anyone properly…!

Was this my end…?

Was this going to be the end of my make-believe adventure…?

"_Thank you… for saving my life." _

That's right… didn't I save Raphtalia's life…?

She said that to me, right? I wasn't dreaming, right…?

"_Thank you for taking care of me…" _

Was Raphtalia… going to die like this…?

No! It… it can't end like this! I… don't want it to end like this! Not for me, and not for Raphtalia!

As the floor became closer, I felt dread inside my body…

Who could even save us…?

I could only close my eyes… and await my death...

3…

2…

1…

Everything stopped.

And then, I felt warmth. Something... on me was generating something warm. As I slightly opened my eyes again, I could only see two colors:

Blue and Yellow…

Suddenly, we landed on the ground as I didn't feel anything painful anymore. Fully opening my eyes, I could see something on the ground that was glowing a teal-like color. It was… like a symbol. But it was something that I didn't understand. Checking to make sure that Raphtalia was okay, she opened her eyes as well, only to look like she's a bit woozy.

It… looks like she's okay! Thank you, Oum! As I wanted to pat her head again, I saw something on my right arm. It was… a silver shield? And in the middle of it, was an emerald orb that glistened the more I looked at it.

"A-a Demi-Human?!" I could hear multiple people talking around me as they sounded shock to see Raphtalia. Everything but the symbol was too dark so I really couldn't see their faces.

"F-Fantastic! The… the summoning! It worked!" As someone with a hood came a bit closer, I could see that it was a man who said that. Well, other than the voice, yes, it was a man.

"Brave Heroes, won't you save us from pure evil?!"

"What?!" It wasn't just my voice that I heard. It was three others that I was able to hear. By the sound of it, the three who was also in the glowing symbol, were all male. As they stood up, the three held something in their hands:

A sword…

A spear…

And a bow…

And on my arm… was a shield!

What… is going on here?!


	5. A New World?

**(A/N) **

**There will be some things that are going to change that are different from the cannon of The Rising of the Shield Hero. Just to clarify, remember when The Rising of the Shield Hero had the Harem genre? Yeah… I'm going to support that in this story. Who's going to hate our loveable Shield Hero, Jaune? **

**Will there be characters from RWBY involved? Well… let's see then, shall we…? **

"You summoned us from our respective worlds and you're asking for something like this from us? To me, that's just selfish. What if we wanted something in return from this task?" The teen with light brown hair and golden eyes with the bow was the first to respond. "Save our world"? Does… that mean that we're in a different world? No, Remnant needed to be saved by Grimm so it makes sense that they are asking us to help them. But then… why were brought here so suddenly? It… doesn't make any sense!

"I'm very sorry, but we really need you Heroes to save our world! The waves-" The man who was pleaded in front of us had stopped after the teen with black hair raised his sword at him. As I stared at him with a confused look, Raphtalia was able to fix herself, and quickly hid behind me.

"Annoying. You continue to ask us to save your world, but what comes of us after we're done? Will we be taken back to our original world?" Asking this casually with a raised sword was going to make it look like you're their enemy, so why continue to do that?

"W-well, you need to speak to the king for that request. The king-"

"What about rewards for our 'courage and bravery'? I suppose we have to "speak to the king" for that answer, huh?" The only looking adult who was summoned was the one to cut the man off. He had blonde hair like me, and he held a spear. Wouldn't it be fine to just let him finish his sentence? I mean, yes, we have questions, but we actually need to hear him out first. I mean, just because they ask us to save their world, it doesn't mean that they have to be so rude and demand something in return so quickly.

"Yes, you need to speak to the king as he would reward you… all handsomely." Why did he hesitate when he said that? And why did he look at me and Raphtalia when he said that?

"Well, he better or your "Heroes" would eventually end up being your enemies." What on Remnant is wrong with him?! Why is he suddenly saying that we're going to be their enemy?! I want nothing to do with what this man is saying. They… saved Raphtalia's life so I could at least help them in return.

"G-good Heroes, I must ask you to negotiate your demands with the king. M-must we take our leave now!" And just like that, the man was already nervous around us. Their… weird methods of negotiation was absolutely rude. Who knows what will happen if they acted like this to the king! They might just be kicked out by then!

"All right, then. Even if we spoke to the queen, our demands won't change." With that, the other… Heroes took their leave and followed them to the path of the king. While I do respect their questions besides the rewards part, I'm wondering if we could ever return to our worlds. Will we be stuck here with no other back, then?

"Hey, you coming?" The adult with the spear had asked me this as he placed his spear over his shoulder. Crap, I must've been in thoughts for a while now…

"Y-yeah!" As he left, Raphtalia came from behind me and I took her hand and started to follow them.

"Mr. Jaune?" Raphtalia thought this was the time to speak since no one could hear them from this far back.

"Yes, Raphtalia?"

"This place feels… familiar." "Familiar"? What exactly does that mean?

"Have you been here before, Raphtalia?" If by "familiar" she means by been here before, then… what exactly does that mean, exactly?

"No. Just… smelling the air feels a bit more… familiar." Because of her Faunus features, she was able to sense and smell things that a Human couldn't. Enhanced hearing, enhanced sense of smell, these were the things that made Faunus so amazing!

"...Is that so? Well then, Raphtalia, let's hurry up and catch up with them." I didn't want to ignore the feeling that she was having, I just thought that we shouldn't get lost in a place like this. If they were able to… summon us from our world, then people might have magic here. This place might have all sorts of creepy things here.

"Okay…" With that, we quickly hurried to catch up with them.

* * *

"So, you four the Four Cardinal Heroes from ancient legends. This is the land of Melromarc where you four will be taking your stay at. As you can see, I am the king of Melromarc. My name is Aultracy Melromarc, it is a pleasure to meet you all. Now, may I please have your names?" As we stood in front of the king, we found ourselves standing on a red carpet with surroundings of a castle. It definitely smells like luxury in here. Anyway, I wonder how many years the king lived. What kind of brave feats did he do that made him into a king?

"Ren Amaki. High school student and 16 years old." The one named Ren was the one who carries the sword. He definitely gives off a 'Ren' vibe. I mean, this Ren acts almost the same as the Ren I know. A bit cold on the outside, but when you get to know him, he becomes a bit more like a brother. And that's saying something since I was raised as the _only _male in my household. Who's to say that I won't experience something like that again with the Ren from here?

"I'm Motayasu Kitamura. I'm a college student that's 21 years old." Mota...ya...su was the one who carried the spear. I found his name odd, but I doubt I'm going to have trouble saying it when we talk to one another.

"Itsuki Kawasumi. I'm still in High school as I'm 17." And lastly, the guy named… It..su..ki was the one who holds the bow. These names are getting harder and harder to pronounce, isn't it? Oh, looks like I'm next in line.

"Um, I'm Jaune Arc. I'm in high school and I'm 17 years old. This here is Raphtalia." After greeting myself, I showed Raphtalia who was still shy to greet others. Well, who's to say that won't change? When I was younger, I was shy to greet others as well. Now look at me, I-well, can at least hold a conversation with someone. When Raphtalia gets older, I'm sure she'll be-

"A Demi-Human?!" A womanly voice asked flabbergasted.

"What's a Demi-Human doing in our castle?" Another woman had asked almost the same question. Looking at everyone else besides the other Heroes, I could see the nervous looks on people's faces. With those faces, I could hear conversations starting to brew up as they looked at me and pointed at me like I'm sort of circus clown.

...I know those looks. Those are the looks that showed that their uncomfortable with Faunus around them. Even in Remnant, while I walked with Raphtalia, I was sure that I've seen looks like those...

They're racist…

Even in another world, they're racist…

"Ahem, settle down everyone. Let's discuss the matter at hand. Allow me to explain the reasoning as to why I summoned you all here..." I could see the king's eyes waver a bit, before going back to his calming demeanor. If these people didn't like Demi-Humans… then the king probably doesn't, right? As… disappointed as I am, I'm going to have to listen to his explanation for now…

And that went on for hours…

So, the basic gist of things, was that the world was starting to have trouble dealing with these… phenomena called Waves. As each Wave starts to be created, the Four Cardinal Heroes are called to stop them from destroying the world. And as each Wave progresses, they start to become more powerful. In this world, every country has an Ancient Dragon Hourglass in their possession. These hourglasses basically predicts how much time we have left before the Wave starts. Unfortunately, a had started before we were summoned. The knights were able to hold out on their own, but not without bloodshed on their end. According to the king, we only have a few weeks before the second Wave starts.

"We fought bravely, but in the end, we underestimated the Waves strength. Our only solution was to follow the ancient legend, and summon you four to protect us. Four Cardinal Heroes, we ask of you, please protect us from the waves. The sword, spear, bow and… shield are our only hope! We don't have much time left!" This was the second time someone hesitated when they looked at me. Were they… doubting me?

As a piece of metal clanged on the floor, I looked to see that it was Ren who wanted to get his attention. "Okay, I think we all get the gist of things. Now, you didn't think we'd save this world for free, did you?" Okay, other than the Ren that I know, this one acted a bit _too _high and mighty.

"Of course not," An old man who wore a robe was the one to respond instead of the king. "Once the waves are finished, we will reward you most handsomely." As he finished, Motoya...su had smirked. Other than Itsu...ki, they really see themselves as people that are worthy of praise.

"Then we'll take your word for it then. Besides, we have no choice, do we?" Well, if you had the choice to threaten them about becoming their enemy, then sure, I guess you don't have a choice.

"If you revoke your promise, we leave. We aren't your pets so don't think you can put us on a leash." Seeing that they are the ones who summoned us here, I really don't think we should leave so easily. Couldn't they send us back if they wanted to?

"Right. We're not going to allow others to look down on us." Itsu...ki, don't ruin the respect I have for you, right now. Feeling Raphtalia pull on my pants, I looked down at her to see that she was pointing at something.

She pointed at someone who held a glare at her; only for them to direct their attention to somewhere else when I looked at them…

...Raphtalia is going to stay at my side. I might not understand their relations with Faunus, but I'm not going to allow Raphtalia to be on her own. I don't know this land, but there's one thing that I do understand about it:

They're racist…

" When we come to an agreeable arrangements, then I will no doubt reward you all with no trouble. Now, I would like to ask you all to look at your statuses." Um, wait, did he mean like statuses like games? Hold on, what exactly was this world?

"What exactly do you mean by that?" Itsuki was the only one who looked to be confused. It's probably because he doesn't play video games, or he doesn't understand the fact that we could look at our status. I'm guessing the second one since I don't understand either.

"I didn't expect you all to be dense. Look at the lower right corner of your screen." Okay, Ren, I'm not appreciating the rudeness that your displaying. As I looked to my lower right, I could see three dots in the corner of my vision. As I continued to stare at it, a screen had suddenly popped up in front of me.

"Only level 1?" Itsuki looked the most disappointed as he looked at his own screen.

"How are we even supposed to fight the Waves, if we're this low of a level?" Motoyasu stared hard at his screen as if he waited for the stats to change.

"Um, can you explain what this is, please?" I asked kindly as I didn't want to be as rude as the other three. However, the way they looked at my shield was… weird.

"It's called Status Magic. This is magic only exclusive to the Heroes." As he stopped, I was a bit disappointed. Not much of an explanation, but it's something at least.

"What are we to do now?" Motoyasu asked.

"You all must embark on an adventure now. As you do so, you will encounter enemies that must be defeated in order for your statuses to change. The legendary weapons aren't for display. As you increase your power, so will the legendary weapons at your side. Looking at me shield, I wondered what sorts of abilities I will have. The shield isn't that much of a weapon since-wait, isn't this just like that book me and Raphtalia read? Did we… get sucked into the book? And wait, where's Crocea Mors?! As I looked around on my body to find it, I looked to see that Raphtalia was holding it to her chest. When did she…?

"Looks like we're going to have to level up hard and fast, right?" Itsuki asked the obvious.

"Yup. We're going to have to train hard and become stronger." Ren also pointed out the obvious.

"Can't we just use other weapons, though? I mean, the spear's cool and all, but I find myself as a sword person." Motoyasu complained.

"Well, once we get used to these weapons, we could work together and take on the Waves!" As much as I wanted to complain, I didn't. Since this was something that was entrusted to me, then I have no other choice but to use it until I get the hang of it. Well, with Crocea Mors, I'm sure I could get used to-

"Oh, and before I forget," As the old man got our attention again, he continued. "You all must recruit allies separately. From ancient studies, said by their very nature, the Four Legendary Weapons repel one another and hinder your development if you all work together." After he finished, I could see a screen that was displayed in front of me again, but this time, it said Help on the top. It was in a different language, only for it to turn into English. Was that one of the shield's abilities? It explained what he said a few seconds ago, but I found it to be… crap. Why couldn't the Four Legendary Weapons be together in battle in the first place? If they weren't supposed to be with one another in the first place, then why were we all summoned here to begin with? Were we… supposed to be summoned altogether?

"Since the sun is about to set, rest here for the time being. Tomorrow, you all will begin your journey. In the meantime, we will be gathering the best of the best to form your parties. Rest easy Heroes." The king was going to gather the best of the best, huh? I hope that they won't mind Faunus, then. After he was done speaking, a lady with a brown dress had stopped and bowed in front of us.

"We have quarters prepared for all of you. If you all will follow me, please." And like that, we followed the lady to our next destination…

* * *

"The only explanation we have is that we are all from different Japans." Okay, so how did it come to this? After following the lady, we were greeted with a buffet of food for us to eat. Raphtalia, who had something on her mind from the moment we talked to the king, had been staring into space without eating her food. After getting her attention, she started to down a whole lot of food in her mouth. She was really hungry back then. Now, we're in a room with the five of us in here.

Anything talked in there was not normal to me. At first, they were just arguing about the games they played as they see this world as some sort of game; then, they began talking about a place called… Jap...an? I haven't heard of it, so I decided to not be a part of it. Meanwhile, Raphtalia was busy hiding behind the couch as she watches them argue. Great, this isn't a good view for a child.

"What about you, John? What kind of things from your Japan do you know?" He was talking about Prime Minister, currency, and anything of the sort. Well, it's kind of hard to explain myself since I wasn't from that place they were talking about.

"Um, I didn't come from Japan. I come from a place called Remnant. And my name is pronounced Jaune." To this, it shocked the three of them.

"Wait, so you didn't come from Japan, then? So, this might be something like parallel worlds, right?" Motoyasu seemed to be the most interested with the parallel worlds thing. We all came from parallel worlds… that seems way too crazy to believe. But then again, we were summoned here, so what's there not to believe?

"Indeed. While I haven't heard of a place called Remnant, I do see this as something fascinating. Oh well, it doesn't matter anymore. We're here, so that's the only thing that matters." It was like Itsuki ignored the fact that I came from an entirely different place. I would like to tell them about how my world was like compared to theirs, but I'm going to guess that I'll just eventually end up being ignored…

"So, you all play video games, right? And you all said that this world was as close to what you guys play, right? Well, there's to say that I'm not really familiar with it. The games I played aren't even close to what this world is like. I guess that does prove the point that we're from different worlds." As they said nothing and stared at me, I felt sweat dripping down my head.

"Is there something I said?" I asked as I starting to get nervous because of their stares.

"Well, it's just that…" Itsuki wanted to say something, but he chose not to say it.

"You're the Shield Hero…" Ren finished his sentence for him.

"What? There's nothing wrong with the shield. Well, I'm used to using a shield so it won't be so hard to use." Recapping the times that I used the shield to stop the Boarbatusks spin attack, I felt proud that I had a shield with me.

"Well, you must've played a lot of games that involved using a shield, then. For what I know, anyone who uses the shield… are losers." My eyes widened when I heard those words from him. Did he just call me… a loser? For… what reason? There's no way that I'm a loser, right? I… couldn't be a loser, right?

_Getting my butt kicked to Cardin…_

_Using false transcripts…_

_Relying on my team to help me out…_

_And even failing to raise a sword properly…_

...

"Mr. Jaune is not a loser!" Hearing Raphtalia's scream, we all looked at Raphtalia. The others looked at her with confusion in their eyes, but for me, I'm looking at her widened eyes. She's still holding onto Crocea Mors, and she started to grip it tighter.

"Mr. Jaune is not a loser! Even if he uses a shield, he saved my life! I don't care if anyone sees Mr. Jaune as someone unnecessary! To me, Mr. Jaune is anything but a loser! He's my hero!" Saving her life, huh? Well, we got lucky, I guess. If we didn't have the book with us, we would've been dead with our heads split open. But even so, if Raphtalia believes that I'm not a loser, then… I won't! I became her hero, so I shouldn't be putting myself in depression. Heroes would pick their heads up from this, so why shouldn't I pick him head up?

"...All right, I'll believe you," What Motoyaus said had shocked me. Why did he have a sudden change of heart? "If you save someone's life, then yeah, you're a hero to them. For someone to admit like that, then that proves my point. Congrats, John, since your cute little friend there believes in you, then I won't see you as some sort of loser. Anyone else have different opinions?" I turned to Itsuki and Ren to hear their opinions.

"Well, if the girl believes that you're truly a hero to her after saving her life, then I won't think anything less of you." Itsuki smiled at me after he said that.

"...Nothing different." With his arms crossed, Ren closed his eyes and didn't say anything else after that. Even if I haven't really established a bond with them, their words truly meant something to me. It's sad, isn't it? Being used to being a loser, only to feel happy when someone sees you something better than that...

"Wait, is that a tail, I see?" Motoyasu pointed to Raphtalia's tail that was wagging excessively due to her nervousness…

This was going to be a long night…

* * *

Today was the day that I recruit my allies. As Heroes, our job was to make sure that we become stronger so we could take on the Waves. And to do that, all Four Cardinal Heroes need to recruit allies. Not only that, but we're going to have to level up, and upgrade our weapons. I don't really know what that means, but I guess I'll be able to find something out about it. As the doors open, this was the moment that I waited for… and was afraid of.

"These here are the greatest warriors in the land. These brave souls will fight the waves along side you all." As we walked to the front, I could see the distinction of the people who stood before us. Knights, mages, martial artists, and there's a guy that looks like an assassin. How was this going to work exactly? Are we picking the people here, or will they be the ones who are choosing?

"Future champions, the time has come to begin your journey!" As he finished his speech, the warriors in front of us began to walk towards us. So… they were the ones who got to chose, huh? As I watched them begin to walk separately to choose a hero to follow a Hero, I've noticed something that was… quite off…

Why was it only me and Raphtalia standing there…?


	6. What Happens Now?

Disappointment. Ever since yesterday, I've never felt so… disappointed before. It must've been getting to me recently. The fact that the Faunus or Demi-Humans are treated so… poorly is what disappoints me. Judging looks, they wouldn't know what kind of past the Demi-Humans had to face. The moment we came into this world, I was grateful that they had managed to save Raphtalia. But then again, if they were racist against the Demi-Humans, then what was the point of being grateful anymore? Eventually, the same treatment the Faunus had to deal with in Remnant, will be the same in this world.

"This… is unexpected. I didn't expect the Shield Hero to be… unliked. The king was surprised by the events that had unfolded. It's… strange. The king is the ruler of this kingdom, right? If he was the ruler, then could there be a possibility that the king was racist himself? It would make sense. If his people doesn't like the Demi-Humans, then it wouldn't be a surprise that he was indeed racist. What if he didn't know of the racism? But based on his… assistants reactions to Raphtalia, it doesn't protect him from my suspicions.

Even if that was the case… how does that lead to the problem that I'm facing right now…?

"Why… don't I have any partners?" My obvious question that made everyone turn to me made me feeling incredibly nervous. Out of everyone that was involved in the group of warriors, not a single one decided to join me in my adventures. Soon after, a man had walked to the king's side to whisper something in his ear.

"...I see. Shield Hero, what knowledge do you have of this world?" His odd question had made me raised my eyebrow. How… does knowledge have any part of this situation?

"...None, sir." Why is he questioning my knowledge of this world? It _would _make sense that I know nothing of it because I'm from an entirely different world!

"So the rumors were true, afterall." The king closed his eyes as tried to hide his disappointment that would've been directed at me.

"Rumors? What kind of rumors?" Even if this was supposed to be about me, Motoyasu was the one who asked ahead of me. How could rumors be brought up even if I hadn't done anything?!

"Around town, there has been a rumor that tells of the Shield Hero not having a basic understanding of this world. Based on the Shield Hero's answer, that answers it entirely." After speaking, whispers started to develop. No, they just _had _to be kidding me!

"W-wait, that's because I come from a different world! Why would I know of a world that I knew no existence of?!"

"Yes, it is true that you came from a different world; but legend has it, that the Heroes that are summoned to our land, already has a brief understanding of this world. The townspeople doesn't seem to think that he meets that criteria." The… townspeople? But I haven't even left the castle! How would they know that I didn't know about this world compared to the other Heroes? Unless… someone was eavesdropping? Even if they were eavesdropping, why would they bring it to the townspeople first? Was it to make it believe that I was unreliable? No, something isn't adding up, here!

"...Is there a problem not knowing that much of a world that isn't yours? Sure, I might not know everything, but what's the problem of learning to adapt? In many eyes, yes, I look like a child since I don't know that many things about this world like the other Heroes, but… 'even children can become adaptive to their situations.'" After speaking, the whispers had stopped. Everyone looked at me oddly. Well, I can kind of understand the odd looks since it _was _Headmaster Ozpin's saying.

"...Is that so?" The king asked, looking at me with a curious look.

"...Yes. Even if I don't have partners because of how weak I look, I'll still find a way to become stronger. With my previous experiences with a shield, I've come to learn that even with a shield, there are things that I can protect without a blade in my hand." As I looked around at everyone, I could still see their nervous looks that were directed at me and Raphtalia. Strangely, I've noticed some people wearing robes with some sort of medallion in their hands. Was it religion?

"Man, you must be used to this kind of treatment, huh?" Motoyasu… you have no idea what kind of pain I had to experience…

"...Even with the words of a fool, you speak like you have experience. I might not know what kind of world you come from, but I could at least say that you speak like a warrior." And this is when Ren starts to become more friendly. Itsuki didn't say anything but continue to look at me with a curious look.

"...Even without a partner, you will still choose to fight alone? Is there any volunteers that would like to join the Shield Hero in his journey?" No one moved or even flinched. That's what to be expected when one of the Heroes was a user of a shield. Of course, people would choose anything else but the shield. It didn't matter if people chose to look down on me anymore. I've gotten tired of it. If I want everyone to see how different I am on the field other than standing idly around…

'_What will you do if you don't have enough power to against any odds? What if people won't accept you for who you are because you're a Faunus?' _

'_Then… I'll show everyone how strong I'll become to show them that not everyone is not as they seem.' _

Then… I'm going to show them that I'm willing to take risks…

If it is to become stronger, then I'll take as many risks as it takes…!

As Raphtalia tugged on my hoodie, she pointed at something. At what it was… it shocked me. There was a single hand that was raised. As the person who raised their hand revealed themselves to me, I couldn't help but think to Pyrrha. "I volunteer." With her red hair and emerald eyes, how couldn't I see Pyrrha standing before me? She… was willing to help me, even if I was going against the odds, she chose to help me. She chose to stand before everyone else, and decided on helping me. This… girl was almost exactly like Pyrrha. What makes her different…

Was that I can't trust her…

As far as I know, nearly everyone instead of the Heroes here are racist. Even if she wanted to join my party, how can I be sure that the safety of Raphtalia wouldn't be intruded? Because she was like Pyrrha, because she racist towards the Demi-Humans...

It only makes me want to do this…

Thank you, Pyrrha. Because of you, I'm managing to make my own decisions with my head up high...

"King." Before he could turn his attention to the girl who decided to volunteer, he held his attention at me. Because of how rude I was sounding, everyone began their whispers again.

"Yes, Shield Hero?" This decision was quick to come to me. From the moment I decided to speak of how I'll become stronger, this decision was already made.

"...There's no need to force anyone into my team if they don't want to," Motoyasu, Ren, Itsuki, and the girl looked at me with shocked looks. "Because… Raphtalia is the only partner that I want by my side." Looking back at Raphtalia, she looked back at me with an amazed look. If there was anyone I could trust right now, it will be Raphtalia. Because… she trusted me.

"Raphtalia," I knelt down to meet her height. As she looks into my eyes, I could see that she was nervous. As she held the blade of Crocea Mors in had grasp, I've come to another decision. "I want you to keep Crocea Mors." The only response I could get from her was widened eyes. As I rubbed the top of her head, I stood back up and looked to everyone in the castle...

My shocking demand had quieted everyone in the castle…

"...Are you sure?" Before he asked, I could the king grimace for a second before putting up his calm demeanor. Based on his reaction, I can proudly say that the king is racist. If he held no care for the Demi-Humans, then I won't be surprised when I see other people hating them as well.

"Yes." I only had determination when I answered. It didn't matter if I was going to get shamed on because I chose to ally myself with Raphtalia; all that mattered was that we were going to get stronger. We might not have any other allies joining us, but we'll try on our own then.

The Shield Hero and a Demi-Human was going to somehow change the world…

Or we'll die trying.

* * *

"Hey, Kid, are you going to ask for anything or what?" As I laid my head down on the desk, I hear the blacksmith that we decided on visiting waiting for my order.

"Huh? Yeah, sorry, I was thinking to myself." After my… shocking demand, no one else had decided on joining my party. At first, I wasn't expecting someone to join my party. Because they held disinterest in the Demi-Humans, I held the thought that they didn't want to join me because of Raphtalia. Soon after, I've learned that it wasn't just Raphtalia who they didn't trust. It was the Shield Hero who they didn't trust. Because of the lack of knowledge, they wouldn't even dare to look at me.

"So, you're the Shield Hero, huh?" I wasn't surprised by the fact that he knows me since the townspeople already know of my existence already. That rumor was only going to get worse, wasn't it?

"Y-yeah, my name's Jaune Arc." His smile seemed friendly, but I can't be sure if he's racist or not. When we walked into the shop, I quickly hid Raphtalia behind me so he didn't see her. I'll show her when the time is right.

"Jaune, huh? Well, welcome to my shop! How can I help ya?" I'm guessing this is the part that I show Raphtalia to him. Here's to hoping that he isn't going to kick me out…

"A Demi-Human? Well, well, you have some guts, Kid, that's for sure. Don't worry, I'm not one of the people who'll disrespect my customers." Before I had the chance to reveal her, he already knew that Raphtalia was behind me. I'm guessing her tail wasn't really hidden that well.

"...You don't hate the Demi-Humans?"

"Of course not! Now, what is it that you want? A weapon? Some gear?" I was happy enough that he didn't hate Demi-Humans. I feel like all the stress that's been building up in my head had been washed out. Raphtalia came from behind me and looked at the blacksmith with a shy look.

"My… name is Raphtalia." Even if I gave her Crocea Mors, I want her to use something that's a bit light for her to use. When she gets older, she'll definitely be able to wield it with no trouble.

"Well then, Raphtalia, it's nice to meet you. And by the way, where did you get that sword?" He pointed to Crocea Mors curiously.

"That's… Crocea Mors. It's a sword that I gave her since I'm going to be using this shield for now on." If we were summoned with our respective weapons as a Hero, then I'm guessing that I can't use any other weapon other than the shield.

"Pretty-looking sword if you ask me. Did you make it?" His question made me wince.

"It… was passed down to me. You see, my family comes from a long line of warriors. This was the sword that my great-great-grandfather used to fight against… monsters." It wasn't just because I had the Legendary Shield that I decided to give to Raphtalia, it was because I didn't find myself worthy of holding it anymore. That, and I needed to think of something to give to Raphtalia as a weapon. Even if I wasn't worthy as I was just disappointing my great-great-grandfather, I gave it to her because… I trusted her. With Crocea Mors, she's bound to achieve greatness.

"Passed down, huh? Well, aren'tyou lucky to have used a weapon that was used from a warrior like your great-great-grandfather!" I chuckled slightly before eventually stopping.

"Since she's too young to wield it, could you give her a dagger for her to use? We're kind of on a budget here. If I should say how much, I'd say 300 silver coins." After hearing my budget, he began to look through his weapons. Even if I only had a single party member, I was given the same amount of currency as the other Heroes. All of us were given 600 silver coins as a means to our journey. I expected more since I had only one partner, but I guess I'll manage by saving.

"Okay, from left from right, here's the order: Iron, Magic Iron, Magic Steel, and Silver Iron. The prices also ascend, by the way." They all look like amazing daggers, but I… don't really know that much of the magic weapons. Was it that if you wield them, that you use magic that belongs to that respective weapon? Was it like elemental weapons? I don't know…

"Um… Silver Iron, please." Since it was the highest in price, it makes sense that it was the best of the weapons to use.

"That'll be 250." After buying the dagger, he gave it to me, only for something to happen that I forgot about…

*Bzzz!* Out of nowhere, the dagger he gave to me flew out of my hands! Not only that, it shocked my hands as well! Was… this because I couldn't use anything else but the Legendary Shield? Well, I gotta be more careful with what I hold now.

_Silver Iron Dagger_

_Str: 20_

_Vit: 16 _

Suddenly, a screen popped up in front of me where it displayed information about the dagger that I had just bought. As the blacksmith picked up the dagger to give it to Raphtalia, I was too busy looking at the screen in front of me. With each weapon and gear, it gives us a stat boost. Str, Vit, Men, and the list goes on. I'm going to have to pay a bit more attention to what I equip.

"So… mind explaining to me what that was?" The blacksmith was more than likely confused as to what just happened with the dagger when I took it from his hands. After it flew from my hand, the Legendary Shield started to glow as it was like a defense mechanism.

"Um, it's the shield; because I can't use anything else other than the shield, I'm guessing it's only just going to shock me." As he looked at my glowing shield with his… magnifying glass, he was astonished.

"I can't look that much into with it with my magic, but I can tell that this small shield is able to generate a huge amount of power. " I haven't looked that much into the abilities the shield has, but if he's able to tell that it wields a lot of power, then I'll believe that the Legendary Shield is truly powerful. Well, I guess he would say that with the other Heroes' weapons as well.

"Well then, how about I give you two some armor?" Raphtalia and I looked at each for a second before smiling to each other. Well, I guess this was the beginning of our journey, I guess. We got Raphtalia a weapon, and we're going to get some armor so we look the part.

I'm hoping that nothing bad happens in our travels…

* * *

_Enemy Appeared: Orange Balloon Has Appeared! _

Bashing my shield to the angry-looking balloon, it flew over to Raphtalia who unsheathed her weapon. "Raphtalia, finish it!" As the balloon fell to Raphtalia's feet, she raised her dagger and brought it down to the balloon's face, killing it instantly. I guess Raphtalia's starting to get used to a dagger.

"Mr. Jaune, can I ask a question?" Sheathing her dagger, I walked towards her to pick up the remains of the orange balloon that Raphtalia had just killed. As we decided to farm some levels to become more powerful, we eventually found ourselves in the grasslands as we fought against multiple evil-looking balloons. Even while it was still nighttime, we continued to fight until we became tired. Before we could rest, this was the last balloon that we had to encounter for the day. Since we were _too _tired to walk back to the kingdom, we decided on setting up camp for the day. Good thing I was prepared enough to buy some camping supplies in case we had trouble getting back to the kingdom...

"Sure." After setting up the fire, I picked up a piece of the balloon, and I dropped it into the emerald sphere that was in the middle of the Legendary Shield. After that, a screen had popped up where I could see a bunch of abilities that I could use once I fulfill the requirements to activate them. For this… Orange Balloon Shield that I just required, it really didn't do that much for me. Sure, it gave me some defense, but menu didn't tell anything useful about it. Activating the balloon shield, it was basically a orange circular shield that hadn't change in size. Touching it only caused a bouncy feeling to develop from the shield. Yeah, don't really see anything useful with this shield…

"Why did you give me your sword?" It was a question that I knew Raphtalia was going to ask me eventually.

"Well, I can't really use a sword anymore, so I thought it would be nice to give it to you so I don't have to throw it away."

"...Are you sure? I… don't want to lose your sword, though…" Putting away the balloon shield, I patted Raphtalia's head gently.

"I'm sure you won't lose it. Besides, I trust you enough to always keep that sword by your side. Back when I was younger, I remember my father telling me a story that those who wielded Crocea Mors, was bound to achieve greatness. Sadly, the hands it landed in previously, wasn't even close to achieving greatness." I smiled sadly as I looked into the fire as I remembered my father's story.

"Sir. Jaune, why do you keep looking down on yourself?" Raphtalia's blunt question had made me flinch a little.

"...Have you found yourself being bullied because you weren't good enough? When I was your age, Raphtalia, nearly everyday in school involved myself getting bullied because I wasn't as good as my sisters. Sure, they were still in training, but they had more knowledge than me when it came to the Grimm. I couldn't fight back at that time, so I had to rely on my sisters to save me. It was pitiful, wasn't it? When middle school came by, before I knew it, I was separated from my sisters. They went to a training school… and I was sent to a normal school. Even then, I was constantly bullied because the middle school that I attended, was close to my home. Some knew of my parents accomplishments, and some of the kids there still saw me 'unworthy of the Arc name'."

"..." Raphtalia chose to not answer as she still waited for me to finish. Raphtalia was started to become more patient than usual. Was it because she's started to grow up a bit?

"Then, I found some fake transcripts, attended Beacon, and made a fool out of myself. I… hoped that I was eventually going to learn how to fight on my own, but I couldn't do that with someone holding my hand at what to do. Isn't that sad? I just find it funny that someone with the Arc name wasn't close to living up to their family's name…"

Before I knew it, I felt Raphtalia's small hand on my head…

"...Do you feel calm, Mr. Jaune?" Raphtalia's question had made me confused.

"Huh?" Raphtalia only started to rub my head gently as she smiled. It was… kind of nice, but I'm a bit confused behind the reasoning of this.

"When you pat my head, I feel calm when I'm troubled, . Because you look troubled and I'm patting your head, do you feel calm now, Mr. Jaune?" It was weird to admit it, but I guess you can say that this was a bit comforting. I didn't have this kind of treatment before so I'm not familiar with it.

"Yeah, I guess you can say that. Thanks, Raphtalia." I patted her head in return. Because of that, she smiled and started to giggle. I didn't know I made her feel calm when I patted her head like that. After talking about my time in Beacon a bit more, she started to yawn.

"All right, Raphtalia, it's time to go to bed." After I said that, I prepared the sleeping bag, and laid it down next to me. Raphtalia rubbed her eyes as I could see that she was extremely tired. Because of our leveling farming that we did for the entire day, no wonder she's tired.

"...Okay." She said that with a tired voice as she started to enter the sleeping bag. She looked nice and cozy; I just don't know how long we'll be able to sleep, right now. Since I didn't have a watch on me, I really can't tell what time it was. I didn't have my scroll either because it dropped out of my pocket before we were summoned to this world. Just ain't that fantastic?

"Mr. Jaune, are you not going to sleep?" Looking down at her, I could see her half-lidded eyes looking up to me. Seriously, Raphtalia was really adorable. Even in a sleeping bag, she's adorable.

"No, Raphtalia. I'm going to stay up a bit so I can make sure that there aren't any monsters out here going to attack us while sleeping." If we're sleeping out here, then one of us has to stay up and make sure we aren't attacked while one slept.

"But…-" I smiled to reassure her that everything was going to be okay. I was used to staying up a bit, anyway. While we had homework to finish, I found myself to stay up a bit later than I'm supposed to. I guess all that hard work paid off even if it wasn't supposed to be useful to me.

"It's going to be okay, Raphtalia. Nothing's going to harm you, so don't worry."

"But… I'm concerned about you, Mr. Jaune. Are you sure that you'll be okay?" Worried about me, huh? It's not like I don't want her to worry about me, it's just that I want her safety to be my priority.

"It's nice of you to care about me, but don't worry. There's only balloons around here so don't worry. If they cause trouble, I'll just punch them in their angry-looking face!" I lifted up my fist to show that I was confident enough to punch them dead. They can't really do anything to me because of my aura and defense from the Legendary Shield. Of course, I was shocked enough to notice that I still had my aura, but since it's a part of my soul, I shouldn't be surprised.

"...Okay, be safe, Mr. Jaune." With that, she closed her eyes and went off to sleep. She's a quick sleeper so I shouldn't be surprised that she was able to fall asleep in a about a second.

_Jaune Arc: Shield Hero_

_Level 4 _

_Raphtalia: Demi-Human _

_Level 5 _

As I pulled up the menu to see our levels, I noticed that Raphtalia was leveling up much faster than me. It's odd, but I can't seem to find the reason as to why she's leveling faster than me. Did it have to do something with the party? Perhaps I should look into the party information. Moving my finger downwards to scroll to the Help Menu to find some info about the distribution of EXP in a party.

But before I could do that, I heard something move behind me…

*Rustle…* Turning around, all I was greeted with was the already breezing bushes. For some reason, I don't feel like it was the wind that made the rustling noises. Whatever was here, it was smart enough to hide from me.

I had to be patient. Remember from past events to not charge in blindly. If it was one of those balloons, it would've already jumped at me with the intent of attacking me…

But it wasn't…

Whatever was here… it was _not _a balloon…

*Fwoo!* Before I knew it, _something _had brushed against my face at quick speeds. I didn't know what it was, but it was surely sharp. Since it grazed me, it would've drawn out some blood from me; instead, because of my aura, it did no damage to me. Okay, this wasn't a monster…

_Someone _was here to try and kill us…

*Fwoo!* It's coming again! Wait, there's more of them?! Is there more than one person here?!

"Orange Balloon Shield!" As my shield changed into the Orange Balloon Shield, I guarded my face to see what kind of ability this shield could do. As I raised the shield to cover my face, the sharp object had landed on the orange shield, which absorbed the object entirely, and sent it back to the direction it came from. While there was only one of the sharp objects to come towards my face, the others missed my body as they flew by me.

"Gah!" Hearing someone's scream, I quickly grabbed Raphtalia was still inside her sleeping bag, and started to run away from the campfire. We had no time to grab the equipment that we had earlier, we just needed to run! Whoever was trying to kill us, I'm guessing that their bandits of some sort. Bandits at this time made perfect sense. No, now's not the time to worry about who's trying to kill us, right now. What matters is Raphtalia's safety!

* * *

"Excuse me, out of the way, please! I'm in a hurry, please move!" As I made it back to the town, I had to push my way through everyone that was still out at this time. There were some soldiers from the castle there, but I quickly pushed my way passed them even if they were questioning why I was out at this time. Eventually, we found a place that was built like a hotel.

"The Shield Hero and… a Demi-Human?!" By the sound of his voice, I can tell that he doesn't like Demi-Humans. Great, this was just GREAT! We almost got killed, well, kind of, and this asshole probably won't let us rest because Raphtalia's a Demi-Human.

"Look, I'll pay extra, just let us stay for the night. We've already had enough crap today…" As the man behind the counter glared at me for a bit, before extending his hand out.

"No! Don't take them away from me!" Before he could speak the payment, Raphtalia started to flail around wildly. She's having a nightmare?!

"Raphtalia, it's okay, everything's going to be okay!" As I laid her head on my shoulder, I gently rubbed the back of her head to calm her down a bit.

"Why is she acting like that?! You dare bring a dangerous Demi-Human here in my-" Before he could say anything else, I slammed my hand on the table to make quiet him.

"Sorry for the noise, but look, we _really _need a place to stay. Please, just tell me how much it costs and I'll pay it." I didn't _want _to slam my hand on the table, but I had no choice. I hope that I didn't wake anybody because of the noise…

"...I'll prepare your room for you. After tonight, you're gone from here, understand?" I nodded my head as he left to go prepare our room for us. This wasn't a good first day, was it?

"Mmmm…" As I heard Raphtalia begin to wake up, I looked at the window to see that it was the early morning. Because of her flailing that she did yesterday, I found myself having to hold her for the rest of the night until she calmed down.

"Mr. Jaune? Why… are we inside a building instead of outside?" Raphtalia asked with her head tilted as if there was nothing wrong. As I got up from the bed, I prepared myself to explain to her what went wrong. This was going to be hard to explain to her…

"Raphtalia… we had some trouble yesterday with some bandits who were trying to rob us. There were too many of them, so I decided to carry you to the nearest hotel I could find. Well, they might not call it a hotel here, but it doesn't matter. Sorry, I forgot to grab our equipment too..." Raphtalia's face had quickly turned to fear after I explained the story.

"It's okay, Mr. Jaune. You… aren't hurt, are you?" As she didn't care about the equipment we los, she was more focused on my safety.

"Yeah, I'm not hurt. Even if I was, it was worth it because I was able to protect you." Raphtalia looked at me with a saddened expression.

"I'm… glad you aren't hurt, Mr. Jaune. I don't want to lose someone else again…" :

"Don't worry, I'm kind of stubborn when I want to protect my friends."

"But-" Before she could say anything else, the door to the room had been barged open as I could see pointed weaponry at the two of us. Looking at the people who was wielding the weaponry, I've noticed that they were soldiers who worked for the kingdom. Why are they even here and threatening us with their weapons?! As they came into our room, they surrounded the both of us. Because of this, Raphtalia was immediately frightened.

"Shield Hero, Jaune Arc! You are to come with us to meet with the king!" One of the men in armor decided to speak up by screaming at me.

"Wait, what was it that I did? Can you at least tell me what I-" Without any answer, he pointed his blade at me again.

"You dare speak as if you've done nothing?! You and that Demi-Human fiend are to be punished for your crime!" Crime? Wait, what crime is he even talking about?!

"C-crime?! I didn't even do anything! Let's just talk this out and-" As I heard a thud on the floor, I looked behind me to see that Raphtalia had been knocked down onto the floor by the handle of a sword one of the soldiers carried. She wasn't knocked out, but I could see blood dripping from her head. Why… did they do that?!

"Hey! What are you doing! She's only a child!" Before I could rush to Raphtalia's side, the weapons that were pointed at my face had been pushed further towards me.

"Silence! This fiend dared to draw her weapon against us! And for that, she is to be executed!" As he grabbed a handful of Raphtalia's hair, he raised her head with a blade to her neck. Other than the blood, I could see tears dripping down from her face. Executed?! No, no, no!

"Mr...Jaune!" She cried out as the blade was close to her neck...

"Executed?! No, she's only a child! She doesn't need to be executed! I'll speak to the king and we'll work this out! Please, don't kill her!" Regardless of the weapons that were pointed at my face, I tried to push my way to Raphtalia to try and save her. Because there were too many of them, I couldn't advance at all…

"...Drop the weapon. We'll speak to the king to discuss their punishments with the king. Make sure they don't run away." As a man who wore more armor than the rest of them spoke his demand, they grabbed us and started to force us out of the room. As we came outside, I could see many people looking at us with judging looks. But the person that caught my interest, was the man who ran the hotel looking at us with a smirk. Paying no mind to it, we were forced inside a carriage and rode off to the king.

* * *

"Nngh!" As we were dropped to the floor in front of everyone in the castle, the soldiers pointed their weapons at us again. Looking up, I could see everyone's glare that was directed towards me. It wasn't Motoyasu, Ren, or Itsuki glaring at me, but they were concerned to know why I was even here in the first place. However, the one that I found myself frightened of, was the king himself.

"K-king, what is this about? Your soldiers were saying that were harmed one of them but we haven't even-"

"Silence, Shield Hero! You and your untrustworthy companion that you have at your side shouldn't even be here if I hadn't decided on calling a meeting in the first place!" As I had weapons pointed at my head, more soldiers came to Raphtalia's side with even more weapons, causing her to look even more frightened. What was he even talking about? How was Raphtalia even untrustworthy! This doesn't make any sense!

"I had a report from my men that you had attacked one my men in the middle of the night! I sent my soldiers out to make surveillance around the area to make sure that we don't have intruders! As it turns out, one of 'intruders' ended up being the so-called 'Shield Hero!'" Attacked one of his men?! We haven't attacked anyone of the sort!

"W-we were out at midnight because we had spent the entire day leveling up! I didn't attacked any of your men! _We _were the ones who had gotten-" The king slammed his hand onto his chair to silence me.

"I will not take any excuses! _You _might not have done anything, but your companion had done the unthinkable!" Why were they blaming Raphtalia for something hasn't even done!

"If you're saying that Raphtalia and I did something, then show me proof!" I was too scared of what could happen to us if I didn't say anything. I know I was being rude in this… 'negotiation', but they had the thought of executing Raphtalia! There's no time to stall for bold actions!

"Bring him in!" As the king demanded someone to come in, to the left of him, a soldier who was limping while holding their chest, stood by him. What the hell?!

"T-that rodent of his attacked me because he had complaints that they hadn't gotten enough money for their journey!"

"Those are lies! Raphtalia didn't-"

"Silence, Shield Hero! Now, continue if you will." The 'injured' soldier nodded his head before looking at me with a glare.

"Thank you, Your Highness. While my men and I were on patrol, we noticed a campfire that was not that far away from the town. Finding this odd, we decided to check it out; only to find the Shield Hero and his Demi-Human companion camping out there. We asked them what they were doing out here, but the Shield Hero told me that we weren't going to help out the kingdom if he his Demi-Human companion got more money than what they had. We neglected his demand, only for his Demi-Human companion to stab me! They were overcome by greed, Your Highness! We couldn't apprehend them because after she stabbed me, they ran off! However, they dropped this after they ran..." After his fake story, he gave the king Raphtalia's dagger that I bought her yesterday. This… was because I left our equipment there! They used _her _dagger as a source of evidence! What kind of story is that?! Why the hell would I even be greedy enough to just randomly attack someone?! Let alone, Raphtalia?!

"That's not true! We haven't encountered any soldiers, yesterday! Raphtalia was sleeping because she was tired and-"

"Silence, Shield Hero! Speak when you are not told and I will have companions head!" Closing my mouth, my eyes widened. Why? Why was this even happening in the first place? We had gotten attacked at night! Wait, we were attacked at night! There was a sharp object that I had deflected with my Orange Balloon Shield and… it went back to the person who threw it! Wait, it was _him _that threw that object?! No, it couldn't be! This has to be a misunderstanding! If _he _was the one was there…

Then it wasn't Raphtalia who 'supposedly' did it…

It was me…!

No, this is all some made up stuff so they could look down on me again! This has to be some kind of test, right? These weapons aren't meant to kill us…

Right…?

"You and your Demi-Human companion dared to attack one of my men! My men are here to protect and serve the kingdom of Melromarc! They are brave warriors who risked their lives to protect my people! And you went and did this because of… because of money?! What do you have to say for yourself?!" I… couldn't say anything. If I said anything, then I would just be shunned because…

I'm the Shield Hero. I'm… destined for greatness, right?! I'm not supposed to deal with any of this! I'm… the loser of the Heroes, right? No matter where I go, I'm destined to be the loser of the story, right?

"...Execute the Demi-Human." Immediately after saying that, I started to push my way through the weapons that were pointed at my head. I could see and hear the whispers that started to be brought up. Some were about Raphtalia, and some were about the Shield Hero.

"Wait, wait a second!"

"I told you that if you dared-"

"It was me! It was me who did it! I forced Raphtalia to do it!" Saying that, caused everyone to look at me. As I still noticed Raphtalia's reddened eyes, she tried her best to speak, but they had somehow managed to gag her with a cloth. To protect Raphtalia from being executed, I had to take this risk. If I was to be executed, then at least Raphtalia gets too live…

"...What? What are you talking about?" Everyone's attention was directed at me as I was about to explain myself.

"Raphtalia wouldn't have done it, without my order, right? She's just a child so she wouldn't understand anything else but my order! If anything, I _forced _her to attack your soldier!" Since we were too deep into this, there's no way they'll believe my side of the story. I'll be only delaying the inevitable. They'll kill Raphtalia, throw me in prison, and I'll rot.

"You mean to tell me that you forced a child to attack my soldier!" This… was stupid. They made me look like a bad guy, while not even a second ago, he was ready to kill Raphtalia. This… why was this kingdom like this?

"Yes, he said himself, right? I _was _greedy for the money, right? There's no reason to kill Raphtalia because _I'm _the one who forced her to attack for me. I mean, I can't fight on my own because I'm the Shield Hero, right? If I needed to get something done, I'll have someone do it for me, right?" In looked to Raphtalia to see her crying. She couldn't speak because someone gagged her with a cloth. I'm… doing this for Raphtalia. There's no other reason but to do this for Raphtalia…

I refuse to let her die for some… make-up story that they made…!

If someone was going to die… then it had to be me. Raphtalia was still young. Even if the world was going to hate her because she's a Demi-Human, then I'm sure she'll find a way to live around that. She'll grow and grow until she becomes a hero that she wants to be…

While I, a wasted potential… die for taking this risk…

"...Is that true, Jaune? Is it true that you forced Raphtalia to attack this soldier?" Without even noticing, Itsuki was by my side as he put his hand on my shoulder, asking me if I 'actually' forced her to attack the soldier.

"...Yes. I said it, right? I did it. I… forced her to attack the soldier…" With my head down, I wanted the tears that were in my eyes to leak, but I couldn't do it. I… can't show how weak I was. If I was going through with this, then I'm going to have to play 'make-believe' with all I've got…

"...Good luck then, Jaune," With that, he started to bring his hand away from my shoulder and was about to walk off until… "You truly are her hero…" It was a faint whisper, but I was able to hear it. Does… Itsuki believe that I didn't do it? Even… even if I asked him to help me, he knows that it won't be enough to prove our innocence…

I'm against Melromarc itself…

I expected myself to slay monsters, get recognition, and become a hero…

But I never thought I'd be against the people who saved our lives…

"Jaune Arc," Ren's voice had made me look up at him. Flashes of the Ren that I knew replaced his figure, only for it to be replaced with the reality that I'm now stuck in. "...Never had I thought of you to be criminal. Your weak-minded naive personality makes me think that with sureness. But even as you are a criminal… I wish the best of luck." After saying that, his team started to talk to him about something like "why did you talk to him"?

"...Jaune, I'm sorry." After whispering to his team, Motoyasu said nothing else but that. Other than the words that they said to me, we were alone. We were going to be treated with a punishment that's meant for criminals…

"...If you weren't the Shield Hero, I'd have you executed on the spot. _Because _you're the Shield Hero, I can't imprison you, either. However, you're punishment is that I will strip you from your current gear, and the people will know of your criminal deed! You will never live a normal life, ever again!" Normal… life? What about my life was normal? I had been bullied, disrespected, spat on, and even punched into a pulp. I fought Grimm, blocked out the people who treated me unwell, and eventually got summoned to a different world. What about this life was "normal"?

"...Fair enough. Here." As the guards let Raphtalia go, she came rushing over to me and dug her head into my stomach. As I held Raphtalia, I took the remaining amount of money I had left, and placed it onto the floor. With that, I picked up Raphtalia, held her head into my shoulder as she continued to cry, and started to walk away from everyone…

"The Shield Hero is not needed here!"

"Why do we have to rely on some criminal to save us, now?!"

"We shouldn't have summoned all four Heroes!"

"Yeah!"

As I heard everyone's reactions to my leave, I could only think of leaving this place. Even if I hear what they're saying about me, I can't become upset. Because this was the decision I made to save someone's life again. If I hadn't stepped up, Raphtalia was going to die here. I'm… a Hero, right? I'm supposed to save everyone's life with the Legendary Shield, right? Even if I'm looked down on, I… have to protect everyone. The other Heroes might get high praises like my sisters before me, and I'll… still be left behind. Was it… wrong to do the right thing?

"Wait a second!" Not having the strength to take my arm away, I let Motoyasu take my arm as he wanted me to stop. He… trusts me, right? He knows that I didn't do it, right? Even if he did, the others wouldn't believe me…

"...What are you going to-"

"Stop," That's all I said to him to make him stop talking. Even if he did have my arm, I didn't want him to continue talking. No one will believe me, no matter what I say. And so, I turned my head towards him, showing the tears that I wanted to hide. "I'm… a loser, right? This is the path the loser has to take in order to become strong, right? I… have to continue being her hero…" With that, he looked at me with widened eyes and let my arm go. That was all that needed to be said so I could walk out…

This… was the journey of a loser...

**(A/N)**

**Truly, the longest chapter that I've written. Sorry for how long it took to make this, but it was... worth it? I have no confidence that this was a good chapter. I... seriously don't know as I relied on some of the things from the original, switched it up a bit, and then posted this. Really sorry if this didn't meet to a lot of people's needs...**

**Anyway, I'm just going to say that Jaune _will _not become like Naofumi with his angry behavior directed at everyone he meets. This IS Jaune Arc we're talking about, remember that. I hope you all enjoyed the long chapter.**


	7. The First Wave Begins

We walked away. That was all we could do in that situation. Because… I made that choice, we had no other option but to continue forward and see what happens next. Even as we walked through the town that day, I could still feel the glances that soon turned into glares directed towards Raphtalia and I. Insults, fruit being thrown at me, jeering at how the Shield Hero wasn't needed, we continued walking. Of course, I made sure to cover Raphtalia to make sure she wasn't getting hit by the fruit."Look straight, and don't feed into their looks"; that's what I told Raphtalia as we walked passed them. Regardless of their looks, we had to continue moving. We had… to go somewhere that's not in the town. That's the only option for the both of us being safe.

And so, I decided that we start getting used to the wildlife outside the town…

We were going to have to adapt to the wildlife as a way of living for the time being. Until we… find some actual shelter to stay in, we had no other choice but to live like the poor. It was funny at the time; a Hero who was destined for greatness, was living outside the town he was supposed to protect like a poor person. We had no money, nor shelter, and the only food we could make is the food from the animals that we strike down. Of course, Raphtalia had been the one to cut them into pieces so I could cook them. Without her knife, she had no other choice but to use the Crocea Mors. As heavy as it was for her, she had to practice swinging it so she could eventually get used to the weight of it.

Despite her swings taking a lot out of her, she insisted that she continues to wield it. If she wanted to continue wielding it, then I had to respect her wish. So, to make sure she's strong enough to wield it, I asked her to start lifting the sword up and down as if they were dumbbells. Well, as weird as it sounds, I wanted her to make sure that she stays in shape. We have no other option to train ourselves to make sure we're prepared for anything in the long-run.

Soon enough, Raphtalia was using Crocea Mors without having any problems whatsoever. I don't know if lifting the sword like a dumbbell worked, but I have to say that she's using that sword like a warrior. From "Raphtalia, I'll keep staying up at night to make sure we don't get attacked", to "Mr. Jaune, rest. Nothing will come to harm you as long as I'm awake and swinging this sword". It wasn't word for word, but it was something along those lines. Regardless of that, when she did start to act so… protective of me? Before, she was just a child that was afraid of all sorts of monsters, but now… it's like she's a different person! How could a child change that much in the span of a month?! Before the long and miserable month, we started somewhere around 1-3, only for us to be at level 14-16 now! Turns out, Raphtalia seems to be getting more EXP than me because she's in a Hero's party according to the Help menu I've read. She's currently 18, while I'm 17.

Oh, how I would kill to understand why changes are happening so suddenly…

And leaves to where we are currently…

"It's been a long time since I've seen your face, Blondie. I almost forgot all about you." The blacksmith grinned at us as he crossed his arms.

"...Hey, it _has _been a long time…" For whatever reason, he still continued to grin at us as if he didn't care about my social status. He… knew about my status, right? Any moment now, I'll be kicked out of his shop and be left walking to find another blacksmith to visit.

"What's the matter? Oh, you're probably thinking if I hate you or something like that, right? Well, I got news for you, Blondie, I don't care." His eyes sharpened after he said that.

Or… he doesn't care about it…

"'You don't care'?" He shook his head as he basically answered my question without saying anything else than what was already said. It's… good that we're still on good terms then. He seems like a nice guy, regardless.

"Of course not! You honestly think that I believe that you, someone who looks like they hadn't harmed a single person, attacked a soldier? No offense, though." I chuckled slightly as I waved it off.

"No offense, I guess. But I… actually did attack him. It was… self-defense because he attacked us while Raphtalia was asleep, so I used my Orange Balloon Shield to deflect it at him and…" I didn't need to say any more than that. He could piece it together as to what happened in that one scene I described.

"So it was actually true? Hm, and it was self-defense, huh? So all they've been complaining about how unworthy the Shield Hero is, but they think those 'brave' assholes are? What a bunch of crap." Clenching his hands, he was visibly upset.

"They put the blame on Raphtalia so they could execute her, so I had no other choice but to come up with something that could save her life: I took the blame, acting like it was 'actually' true…"

"...'Took the blame, huh'? Seriously, how corrupted is this kingdom? Anyway, you did a good thing, Kid. For the life of your partner, you decided to put your life on the line to make sure she's safe. Hell, even without fighting anything, you're already looking like a hero!" 'Looking like a hero', huh? It feels… nice hearing that from somebody else…

"Um, hey, I… have a question. Do you mind answering it?" Now, it was time to ask him something that's been on my mind for quite a while. This was the reason I came here, after all. It was risky coming back here, but I guess everything worked out fine.

"Erhard…"

"Huh?"

"The name's Erhard, Jaune. Don't be forgetting it, ya hear?" I nodded my head to answer his question.

"Good. Now, does this question you have involve a certain child?" Blushing a bit from embarrassment, I nodded my head again. As if it was her time to introduce herself, Raphtalia walked up to the counter and smiled.

"It's nice to meet you, Sir. You might already know my name, but I want to introduce myself properly this time. My name is Raphtalia, wielder of Crocea Mors, and Mr. Jaune's sword." Bowing politely, we stared at her with amazed looks.

"...This is that child that you've brought in a month ago, right? Well, I can gladly say that she's grown into a fine lady." He asked with a tint of red on his cheeks.

"I'm not a child!" Raphtalia pouted as she didn't like being called a child.

"Y-yeah…" Trying my best to hide my blush, all that came out was a stutter. Raphtalia has… grown _very _quickly. The day I woke up to find that Raphtalia was a bit taller than she usually was, I was in confusion. How in the world did a 12 year old girl suddenly turn into the age of 16 in a single month? Okay, was there something I'm missing here?

"I can't believe it, I hardly recognized her! I knew that Demi-Humans grow much differently than us Humans, but I didn't think she'll grow this fast!" His shocked voice echoed throughout the entire shop.

"Wait, you knew that she'll grow like this?!"

"You didn't know? You had a Demi-Human by your side this entire time, and you didn't know?" To that, I can't make a response. I was so used to Faunus, that I didn't think that Demi-Humans were different from them. This _was _a different world after all…

Wait, I've just noticed it…

Raphtalia was called a Demi-Human when we first arrived here, right? When we were in Remnant, first, I rescued her from drowning after that strange blue light appeared, second, she didn't have any knowledge of this world, and she was very confused as to where she was…

Was… Raphtalia from _this _world…?

If that's true, then how did she get to Remnant in the first place…?

"Hey, Blondie, you okay? You've been staring at the wood for a couple of seconds now." Snapping out of my thoughts, I focused my attention back at Erhard.

"Sorry, what were you saying?" I'm going to have to discuss this with her at a later time.

"Right. I was asking if you needed something other than the answer to your question from earlier." Right, we're in a blacksmith's shop so I should probably…

Wait, I forgot something _very _important…

"Um, we don't have anything else to know, thank you. We'll be-" All of a sudden, I felt a strong force tug on my arm before I walked out of the shop.

"In fact, _I _was thinking that we should get Mr. Jaune something since the Waves are going to start later on in the day. Can you please help us?" I felt my arm between two- no, Jaune don't think too much into it.

"W-wha? R-Raphtalia, I appreciate your concern for me, but we don't have-"

"Mr. Jaune, please consider your own appearance before worrying about me. Besides your shield, what happens when we encounter a strong enemy in the Waves? What are you going to do, then?"

"W-well, I have the shield's protection so…" I can't come up with anything. Seriously, how can a little girl change THIS much after a month?! Seriously, what's going on in this world?!

"Mr. Jaune, if I remember correctly, you've gotten injured a while back, correct? No matter if you continue to create potions for yourself, you will definitely need to have some better protection." Right, as we lived our life in the wildlife, I continued and continued to upgrade my shield as I leveled up. Ranging from the Leaf Shield to the Mush Shield. There were all sorts of shields that I've acquired in a span of a month, but they're not very strong. I've attained shields that mostly focus on support. Making potions, fishing for fish easily, and better quality items that help with my potion effects. Before, I thought the Legendary Shield wasn't _that _useful, but I guess not. Looks like I'm in for a couple surprises as I level up…

"W-well, if I keep making potions to heal myself, then I won't… have any… trouble?" I stopped talking after Raphtalia looked at me with a smile that wasn't very genuine of her.

"Mr. Jaune?" Even with her eyes closed, with a smile like that, I can tell that behind those closed eyelids is an angry raccoon…

"Y-yes?" Raphtalia rested her hands on my shoulders as she slowly opened her eyes. Locking me in place, I couldn't avert my eyes from her devilish-looking smile…

"You don't want to die, right?" Oh Oum, her eyes are very scary! Why is she asking something like this with that kind of smile?!

"No…"

"Then, please buy yourself some equipment..." I nodded my head slowly as she finally let go of me. Okay, I gotta keep note that Raphtalia can be… very scary…

"But… we don't have any money…" Upon saying that, Raphtalia's ears and tail froze. Did she… forget that we're poor?

"R-right, I forgot about that. S-sorry, Sir, we'll be-"

"HAHAHAHA! Seriously, you two are really something!" Erhard started laughing after watching the two of us converse with one another. It was more like I was being threatened by Raphtalia, but I guess we can call it conversing.

"All right, it's on the house. But don't forget to repay me when you have the money, all right?" Hearing that, my eyes widened.

"...And don't think that I shouldn't do it. The both of you are about to go fight the Wave, with NO equipment on. Blondie, you might not know this, but I value both of your lives more than those annoying degenerates at the castle." Raphtalia had a hand on my shoulder as she smiled at me. Before I could say anything, Erhard was the first to speak before me…

"...Blondie, did you know I worried I was when I heard that the Shield Hero left the castle on his own with nothing but a Demi-Human by his side? Seriously, I wished I could've done something when I've noticed the both of you walking by with fruit covered on the both of you, but it was too crowded. So, allow me to apologize by giving both of you some equipment?" Grinning again, he walked to the back to grab a coat of some sort.

"You…" Presenting the armor in front of me, I took it from his hands. It had a similar design to a black hoodie with brown-like armor covering the shoulders and chests. The pants were the same color, but it had no armor covering it. If I should say anything…

It's almost like the hoodie that I'm wearing…

"This is…!" Looking back at him, I can still see him grinning with his arms crossed. Next to me, Raphtalia's eyes widened as she realized something about the armor that was giving me.

"That's… almost like the armor Mr. Jaune's wearing!"

"Ha! Indeed it does! Since I was feeling bad that I couldn't help, I decided on creating armor that would be perfect for you when you come back. I had a dressmaker help with the design of it, but I was the one who thought of the armor plates. It's called the Glacis Shield! What do you think?" As I continued to stare at the armor, I couldn't help but feel…

Happy.

I didn't think that someone would be this kind as to make something useful from the idea of my appearance. Not even that… I didn't think that there would be someone who was going to be kind to me, after what I've done…

"It's… thank you, I truly appreciate this." I felt a pat on my back after saying that.

"No need! You can thank me after you come back from the Wave alive! I might not know how much time you have, but we should probably get yourself equipped so you can be there for the Wave. Oh, and here, for you…" After speaking to me, he gave Raphtalia a sword. It didn't look that much different from regular swords, but hey, I can't judge a book by its cover.

"A sword? But I already-"

"Don't worry, I know how much that sword means to you and him, so I won't push you to take it. But, even so, I would still take this to use for the Wave and have that sword you have there put away. No offense, but with that sword that you gave her, Blondie, it doesn't look like it'll last long against stronger Waves. You know what, how about I take that off your hands and make some… arrangements for ya?" Was he… going to change Crocea Mors? He's going to probably enhance it into something stronger that Raphtalia would probably like. That's… great. Since I lost the shield, she won't be able to use a shield...

"Thank you very much! Mr. Jaune and I are very grateful!" Her tail started to wag as it meant that she was very happy. Truly, when I see something like a tail wag, I can't help but find it very adorable! No matter what kind of Demi-Human they are, it is very adorable!

"Glad to see that you like it, Kid. Anyway, I think it's time the two of you head out. We don't know when the Wave will hit. Head to the nearby Church in the square so you can see that thing called the "Hourglass of the Dragons Era". When that sand falls all the way down, the Wave starts…" Yeah, that's right. A month ago, when I first arrived here, they talked about something similar to that. We're going to have to visit that place so we can see how much time we have left.

"Thank you, we'll be sure to visit it."

"Good luck, then. Have safe travels, all right?" He waved at us before we walked out the door.

"Right!" Simultaneously, we waved goodbye and left the shop…

* * *

"So… this is the hourglass?"

"It looks so… huge!" Arriving at the church, we were easily able to walk in regardless of our reputation, and I guess that's fine. Since I'm still a Hero, I'm 'supposed' to be useful to them. For how long, I don't even know. As long as I get myself stronger, then I'll show them that the Shield Hero isn't weak!

"Mr. Jaune, you're shield!" Without me noticing, a green light at erupted from the Legendary Shield that headed to the top of the hourglass. Suddenly, after that, a menu had appeared in front of my face…

_19:58 _

"That's… a little under a day!" 20 hours looked to be enough for preparations, but we gotta make sure we rest for the Wave. I'll probably have Raphtalia rest for a bit first before me.

"Jaune Arc!" Hearing a feminine voice, we both turned around to see Motoyasu and his party right behind him. It looks like he's gotten stronger in the span of a month as well. Shortly after their appearance, Itsuki and Ren appeared with their teams. I… felt like the odd one out since I didn't have as much members on my team compared to them. Seriously, it's not fair…

"Jaune… you came to see the hourglass, too, right?!" For whatever reason, it looked as if he wasn't expecting to see me here. I won't lie, I wasn't expecting them to be here, too…

"...Yeah. It's… not a problem, right?"

"...Sadly, it kind of is. It's just that… you're a criminal and…" I didn't need him to finish his sentence. His next few words could be that I was the Shield Hero, the Hero who couldn't fight for himself. He would be right... but unknown to him, I do have some tricks up my sleeve…

"You're the weakest of the Heroes! Wouldn't you agree, Lord Motoyasu!" For whatever reason, that red-headed girl that slightly resembled Pyrrha was starting to get on my nerves…

"...Yeah." He agreed with her. Sadly, it looks like Motoyasu was only going to follow his teammates words other than his own. His team… they're glaring at me. It's to be expected with the face of a 'criminal'.

"...Okay, if we're that much of a bother, then we'll leave. Let's go, Raphtalia…"

"R-right!" We began to take our leave as I found no need to continue to idly stand around in an area that I'm hated at. We should probably ask Erhard if we could spend the night at his place for the time-

"That's RAPHTALIA?!" The other three Heroes were shocked to see the new appearance of Raphtalia. Well, I was as well, but I don't think you need to scream at the top of your lungs.

"H-hello again…" Raphtalia shyly waved her hand as a greeting to them. As expected, they couldn't believe their eyes that Raphtalia suddenly grew this fast.

"H-how is that possible! She… was a kid only a month ago!"

"That's… some shocking news…"

"How can a kid grow to be… that cute?!" Motoyasu, you have a team full of women and you decide to come after Raphtalia? I wonder what kind of person he was in his own respective world…

"Well… we best be heading out now, Raphtalia." Extending my hand out, she took it as we began to leave. We have no more time to-

"So, _that _Demi-Human is going to be your weapon? Surely, you have to be joking, Shield Hero!" Turning around, I can see the red-headed woman start to taunt me. What was her name again? I didn't hear it, so I guess it doesn't matter. Ignoring her and her taunting teammates devious smiles, I started to walk towards the front door.

"Ignoring me?! You run away hiding away from the people's opinion of you, have _that _Demi-Human fight for you, and you ignore me?! The princess of Melromarc?!" ...I still hadn't gotten her name. All I got is her affiliation to the kingdom, which is the princess of Melromarc. So she's close to becoming a ruler of this kingdom, huh? Well, good for her. It doesn't really matter-

Wait, people…

The people…!

"So… you've returned from… wherever you've come from. How has your life been?" Itsuki asked as I approached him.

"It's been… going _poorly. _Thanks for asking, though."

"That's… sad to hear. I wish I could help but…" Trailing off, he avoided his response. Was it true that you wanted to help? Or are you just saying that to try and make me feel better?

"Yeah, um, look, Itsuki, I have something to ask of you." Thinking back to what the princess said, I had to ask someone who's close to the castle. And my first pick is Itsuki…

"A question? What is it?"

"...The people. What about the innocent people who could be involved in the Wave? Is there any nearby villages or something like that?" My questions made his eyes widened. I'm guessing he or the other Heroes thought about the people. Well, then again, I can't be the one to talk…

"You're right! I think there's a nearby village called Lute Village!" Overhearing this, Ren decided to jump into the conversation.

"What's this about Lute Village?" With his arms crossed, he questioned the name of the nearby village.

"Motoyasu and… Princess. I need both of you to do a favor for me." Calling out to them, the princess looked at me with a cold glare.

"A favor? Are you seriously stupid enough to think that we'll be doing a favor for a-"

"Ask the king to send reinforcements to Lute Village before the Wave starts. They're going to need the protection and time to evacuate the area. Can you please do that for me? A 'criminal' like me shouldn't be stepping foot in the castle, right?" Why was I even edging onto the lie that I'm a 'criminal'? The… Shield Hero shouldn't be recognized as a 'criminal', they should be recognized as a Hero!

It… just wasn't fair that we had to deal with this kind of treatment in this world…

"...Okay. I'll ask the king to do that, then." The moment he heard that innocent people were going to be involved in this, he stood up proudly and accepted my favor.

"...Tch. Fine, but don't think we're doing this for you. I'm sure this idea won't come from you, but from Motoyasu, the Spear Hero!" Blatantly telling me who's the credit going to isn't going to help. Sighing, it was the time to take our leave.

"...It must be nice, Motoyasu. Being brought to the world with nothing but recognition as a Hero. It's all because you're the Spear Hero, right? And here I am, the Shield Hero who admitted himself to be a 'criminal'. I'll admit it, I'm jealous of the other Heroes as well. You all don't have to live a life of the poor Shield Hero, after all. Lying to everyone that I'm a 'criminal'? Fine. But if it's for the sake of saving my friend, then I'll take all the risks that are necessary. Now, Itsuki, Ren, Motoyasu, I hope you're prepared for the Wave because you're going to have to be prepared to take risks in order to save your teammates. No matter the costs." There was a pregnant pause as they didn't say anything.

"Mr. Jaune…" Raphtalia was concerned. Well, to her, it looks like I'm beating myself up.

"Like we'll listen to you! The other Heroes and their partners are more than enough to handle the Waves!" Again, the princess started to taunt me…

"Well, you don't have to listen to it. After all, I _am _a failure of a huntsman." With that, we took our leave as the door opens.

And all that was left was the sound of the door slamming shut…

* * *

It was the next day. There were only 2 minutes before the Wave starts. Luckily, Erhard was kind enough to let us stay for the remaining 18 hours. He's been doing all this for us, even though we're considered as 'criminals'. He's basically risking his job here by helping us. Well, I hope he knows what he's doing.

"Say, Mr. Jaune?" Raphtalia's worried voice broke me from my trance. It had been a long time since I've heard her act so worried before.

"Yeah, Raphtalia?"

"It's… just that if we don't make it… I'm happy to have met you. You've… done so many things for me that I can't even count them. But even so, just know that I'm grateful that I was saved by you and no one else…" Looking at her, I can see uncertainty in her eyes. Just like her, I was afraid of what we're going to have to face in this battle.

"You don't have to say any last words like that, Raphtalia. After all, we've been through in that month of poverty, I know that we're still able to come across all odds. We've fought against so many weird-looking monsters before, Raphtalia. But not a single one of them in the wilderness had made me feel afraid like the Grimm. You survive, and I survived. As long as we have each other's backs, we'll be able to fight against these monsters with no problem! We'll live, see Erhard again, and pay him back for all he's done for us! Eventually, instead of being a 'criminal', people will see me as an actual Hero! The Hero that protects you, and everyone!" Looking at her, I could see a tint of red on her cheeks. She must've been amazed by my speech, huh?

"Then… I'll be by your side until that day comes. I'll remain by your side even until the day we die. As you are the shield, I will become the sword that will cut any monster ahead of us. Your sword, and everyone's sword, I have to show that even a Demi-Human can become a hero!"

_00:20 _

"That's it, Raphtalia! We'll both become heroes as a promise! Until the day we die…" Raising my shield high, I watched the timer count down as every second is about to lead us to our first battle!

"...We'll fight on!" This was going to be the first grand battle of our lifetime!

We'll push through, and live until we see the day that we become heroes!

_00:00_

Suddenly, the world had turned red. Before, we were in the town with lots of people around, but now, we're in the forest. It looks like we get teleported to the area where the Wave starts, huh.

"Raphtalia, you okay?" Looking at Raphtalia, I can see that she's a bit shaken as she looked up at the sky.

"Huh? Y-yeah, I'm fine, just a bit shook…" Looking up at the sky, I could see some weird vortexes beginning to form. Blue and purple, they are the only colors I could see that comes from the vortexes.

"Wait, is that Lute Village?!" Turning around, I could see a village nearby. From the looks of it, it looks to be in good condition. It looks like the village had been evacuated in time then. All right, all that's left is to deal with the-

"Mr. Jaune, the other Heroes!" Seeing that we're on top of a cliff, I watched Ren, Itsuki and Motoyasu with their respective teammates. I should be grateful that they were able to call in reinforcements for the village.

But then, I heard something begin to sizzle into the sky…

*Boom!* That was all that could be heard as I turned to the direction where I heard the explosion.

"Wait, is that a signal?! Why are they sending a signal if they're supposed to be evacuated?!" Before Raphtalia could say something, something that wasn't supposed to happen, happened:

An explosion went off in the village…

"What? Why are there explosions going off in the village?!" My thoughts exactly, Raphtalia. If there was an S.O.S signal, and then a random explosion went off…

...Then _someone _didn't do their job correctly…

"Damnit, Raphtalia, we're heading to Lute Village!"

"Right behind you, Mr. Jaune!" With that, we started to head towards Lute Village. Whatever is going on there, we're going to be the first to find out…

We might not be heading for the monsters, but we have some people to save!

* * *

"N-Noooo!" A man who was cornered by a zombie soldier was screaming for his life. He had no weapon, and he had no other ways of protecting himself. The zombie soldier raised its battle axe into the air and was about to bring down onto the man's head.

"Air Strike Shield!" Calling a green holographic shield to protect the man, the zombie soldier brought down its axe, only to hit the shield. Seeing this as an opening, Raphtalia moved in to cleanly cut down the zombie soldier.

"Hey, are you all right?" Walking to him with my hand extended out, he took it.

"Wait, you're the Shield Hero! W-where's the other Heroes?" Even this place knows about the Shield Hero. No, there's no time to think about that!

"They're fighting the big boss probably. Mind explaining what's happened here?" Telling Raphtalia to save anyone she could find, she was a bit reluctant at first, but she decided to go on ahead of me.

"The soldiers… they left magical traps for when the monsters come upon us! We told them that they're too close to the village, but they just shunned us and left!" So, when it comes to saving people, they won't give a damn about them?! What kind of soldiers was that?! They are meant to protect their people so why do this?!

"...All right, be sure to get somewhere safe, okay? Me and my partner will wipe the floor clean with these monsters!" Reassuring him that everything was going to be fine, he smiled.

"Thank you, Shield Hero!" With that, he ran away to find somewhere safe.

"Help!" Looking over to see a bunch of people grouped up, I found out that they were being surrounded by a group of zombie soldiers. Looking for Raphtalia, she was busy trying to escort some people out of the village.

"Raphtalia!" As some of the villagers were able to make it out, she smiled. Upon hearing her name, her ears twitched.

"Yes, Mr. Jaune?!"

"With me!" Without wasting a second, I rushed over to the group of villagers.

"Shield Prison!" Using Shield Prison, I covered the entire group of villagers into a cage that looked to be impenetrable. Finding a pipe for this shield wasn't easy. To find one, I had to sneak in the town and steal a pipe to use. For now, I have to focus on saving these people.

"Haaaaa!" With speed so swift, Raphtalia had been able to cut down each and every zombie soldier that surrounded the villagers. I have to say that I'm impressed…

"Shield Hero, you've come to save us!" As much as I wanted to hear their praises for me, we can't waste anymore time. By the looks of it, the monsters won't stop coming until the big boss has been killed. The other Heroes have to be there to fight it, so it shouldn't take too much time, right?

"Mr. Jaune!" Pointing at a group of zombie soldiers heading our way, they seemed to be lead by this big general-like zombie. Not only that, but they're giant wasps heading our way as well!

"Wait, I have an idea, Raphtalia! Stand here, and wait for my signal!" She looked reluctant, but she chose to stay close to me. Okay, there are 4 giant wasps heading our way, right? I hope I have enough energy after this!

"Shield Prison!" Using Shield Prison on the nearest wasp, it fell from the sky and onto a group of zombies. That made a huge chunk of the zombies to be toppled onto the floor.

"Raphtalia, handle the big guy! I'll deal with the fodder!"

"Right!" Separating from Raphtalia, she managed to grab the attention of the zombie general as the other left out zombies started to come after me.

Let's just hope I make it out without any scratches…

* * *

Raphtalia

"This will only take a second…" As the huge armored monster headed towards me, I waited for the right opportunity to strike it down. Based on how sluggish it was, I'm sure that the moment it slams its axe down, that's the moment where I need to take it down.

"**GRAAAAGH!" **Without a mind, all it could do is act without reason. As it raised its axe, I held my hand on the handle of the weapon Sir Erhard had given me and prepared myself. The huge monster started to lower its axe towards me…

A second goes by…

One…

Two…

Three…!

I'm faster than the axe entirely! It'll take more than just strength to win a fight…!

And so, I leaped right passed him…

As I landed on the floor, I sheathed the sword and the huge monster went down without a problem. It looks like I was able to defeat it without any problems! Were the monsters supposed to be this weak? I just… feel a bit stronger than what I expected. The time with Mr. Jaune was surely not wasted!

Suddenly, I started to hear clapping. Looking at the source of where it came from, I could see multiple villagers cheering and clapping at me. Not used to the treatment, I nervously scratched my cheek as I started to feel it heat up. However, that moment soon dissipated as I heard the sound of monsters behind me.

"There's no end to these things!" Preparing myself once again, I waited for the group of monsters to come at me. I don't have Mr. Jaune's protection with me… will I make it out of this alive? They might be easy to kill, but the amount of numbers they have is surely a problem. If I kill hundreds of them, then more will come. By then, I'll already be worn out!

"Soldiers! Get into formation and assist the Shield Hero's partner!" All of a sudden, a bunch of soldiers started to battle against the monsters. Where did they come from?!

"Raphtalia!" As I heard Mr. Jaune's voice, I was relieved.

"Mr. Jaune! You're okay!" Scratching the back of his head, he laughed a bit.

"Well, Shield Prison helped out a lot, but these soldiers helped out just in time." As we watched the soldiers begin to fight the monsters, I readied my sword once again.

"I've got your back. Are you ready?"

"As long as I have yours, Mr. Jaune." There was a huge chunk of those monsters heading straight towards us…

It doesn't matter, as long as Mr. Jaune's by my side, then we'll cut them down!

* * *

Jaune

"Was… that... the rest of them?!" Suddenly, after asking that, the sky had become clear as day again. I… guess that was the last of them. Me and Raphtalia went all out on the monsters. As we fought, we had each other's back until the last zombie had been slain. Defense, offense, defense, offense, defense, offense, we had the zombie soldiers beaten with the amount of teamwork we had. Even without a sword, I can fight!

"It looks like the Wave has been cleared, Mr. Jaune!" As I turned to Raphtalia, I could see that she was ecstatic that we were able to make it out alive. The monsters in this Wave didn't seem that difficult, but that doesn't mean that the next one won't be tougher.

"Hey, nice work out there…" I looked to see a soldier with his helmet off as he leads his troops to the exit of the village. Now that I think about it, the village… nearly everything had been burned down because of the explosions that caused fire to spread to eh village. Looking at the villagers, they mourned, recovered themselves, and walked back into whatever remains they had of their house. I should put the blame on the soldiers, but just blaming any random soldier without knowing who caused it was bad on my end.

"Mr. Jaune?" As if there was something bothering her, her tail and ears drooped.

"...They're proud of you, Raphtalia." Bringing her in for a hug, I patted her head.

"We… have a lot to go through, right?" I nodded my head as I felt Raphtalia wrap her arms around my stomach. As she did so, she pulled me in closer. Okay, she's really strong

"R-Raphtalia…!"

"Please, let me stay like this a bit longer…" Not wanting to go against her request, I settled in the hug.

"Raphtalia…"

"Yes, Mr. Jaune?"

"You have a lot of hair, you know that?"

"Thank you, Mr. Jaune…"


	8. I Am Your World

**(A/N) **

**Double upload! Well, this is a surprise, right? Last chapter, I had made a mistake with the location of the Wave. It was supposed to random, and I had gotten that wrong. For that, I am truly sorry. I know this is supposed to 'follow the cannon' a bit, I'm just going to leave that there. I kind of thought it was a good idea that Jaune had been the only one to consider if there was going to be anyone nearby, even if they had to fight the Wave. He focused on the lives of the people, instead of the monsters. That seems more like him, right? Seriously, I'm really sorry that I got that wrong. Sorry and thank you The Last Rising of The Phoenix for pointing that out for me. Everyone, I hope you enjoy this second upload. (Hopefully, it's not terrible to you all...) **

As evening struck, we found ourselves at the castle once again. While I shouldn't be here because I'm a 'criminal', I had no other choice because of the rewards that will be given to the Heroes. Hopefully, it'll be enough silver coins for us to have so we don't have to worry about being poor anymore.

"Thanks to our Heroes, we were able to save the villagers of Lute Village and won the battle against the Wave! Tonight, we celebrate! Give our Heroes a round of applause!" As the king finished, everyone cheered and clapped their hands as they were ecstatic that we had won. When he refers to "our Heroes", he means Itsuki, Ren, and Motoyasu, right? It won't be a surprise to me if I wasn't included on purpose. Either way, we had to save Lute Village because of your idiot soldiers!

With my hood on, I stood in the corner of the room as I waited for the rewards to be distributed to the Heroes. Even if people could still see my shield, I don't want them to see my face. It becomes a bit more complicated when they're able to see my face, anyway.

"Did you hear? There were some casualties nearby Lute Village. The knights must've fought hard for the people of Lute Village by gathering them away from the village, huh?" I glanced at the man who said that. Casualties? And I don't remember seeing any knights luring monsters away from the village…

"Well, even so, we owe our thanks to the Heroes and our knights. Well, besides the other Heroes, I don't remember hearing anything about the Shield Hero in the battlefield. Heh, the Shield Hero must've hid somewhere while the others did all the hard work for him…"

"Mr. Jaune?" Ignoring the conversation between a nearby man and woman, I heard Raphtalia call out my name. Shortly before coming here, I wanted to cut some of Raphtalia's hair so it didn't continue to grow to cloud her vision. After that, we were able to get some new clothing for her, as well. She looks nice in her new appearance. It's a bit similar to what she wore when I first met her, but it didn't matter. As long as she likes it, then it doesn't matter.

"Hm? Something wrong? Wait, that's not wine, is it?" Holding what looked to be a glass of wine, she happily smiles at me.

"What? Of course not! I'm still too young to drink something like that! I was going to ask you if you wanted to eat with me! Well… I am a grown woman so it won't be so bad to try it out one day. Would you… care to join me if I did?" A tint of red could be seen on Raphtalia's cheeks, as she started to twirl her hair with her free hand. Okay, I'm going to pretend that I didn't hear that last part.

" Sorry, I'm underage. While I am a bit hungry… but I don't think people will like me walking around as if I didn't do anything wrong. I'll just… stick to the shadows."

"Hmph, nonsense! How can it be wrong for someone to grab something to eat! Wait here, Mr. Jaune!" Before I could say something to her, she disappears into the crowd. Well, I don't know what she's going to do, but I guess I can't stop her. Letting her do her own thing, I focused back on what the people were saying. And not to anyone's surprise, they were talking about the Spear, Bow, and Sword Hero's bravery.

Again, it looks like people didn't care about the Shield Hero. All they ever discussed was those three Heroes. It was like I wasn't even needed to the people. They continued to judge the Shield Hero over some lie that was created from the soldiers of Melromarc. They were going to execute Raphtalia if I didn't decide on going further into the lie. It was worth it, regardless of my treatment.

But I didn't expect my life to turn for worse like this…

Day by day, I had to remember that I was a 'criminal'. If I was in Remnant, I was sure to be behind bars. But because I'm the Shield Hero, they couldn't lock me up. They needed me to help out in the Waves so we could win. Even if they did need my help, anything I would do would just be passed onto the other Heroes. But even so, that lie never got in the way when I decide on wanting to protect the people. Pass the credit onto someone who didn't do anything, as long as the people I saved know the truth, then it doesn't matter.

"Mr. Jaune? I brought you some cake; it's really good!" Taking a bite of the cake, her expression had immediately brightened. Scooping up some again, she presented it in front of my face. "Open up~!" Seriously, how does a child change this fast? Opening my mouth, she put the piece of cake into my mouth. Some of it was sweet, but… something about the rest of tasted bland.

"It's good, right?!" I nodded my head, forgetting the fact that some of it tasted a bit bland. Maybe my taste buds changed because of the animal meat that we've been eating for a month. It's been a long time since I ate something sweet.

"Jaune…" Hearing a familiar voice, I turned to see Motoyasu standing before me with the princess right behind him. After walking up to me, everyone in the castle had gone quiet. They really didn't want to miss this, huh?

"...Something wrong, Motoyasu?" Raphtalia stared at both of us with confusion as she didn't know why he's come to talk to me. I didn't know either, but I can tell that it's not good. Since Motoyasu is so favored to the king and his people, I can already tell that it's going to be something stupid again. Was it another lie?

"Answer me, did you attack the knights that were heading to Lute Village?"

Of course, it's another lie that I have nothing to be part of…

"Attack the knights?! We went to Lute Village to protect the people! Why would we ever decide on attacking the-"

"Before the Wave, you told me to call in reinforcements for Lute Village, correct?! Now, why was it that I hear that there were casualties of the knights near the village?! Did you request that so they could fall into your traps?!" What was he talking about?! Why would I ever set traps for the soldiers?!

"What?! You're accusing me of something like that, now?! I don't even know how to-"

"There were explosions, Jaune! And it didn't look like they were created by magic, either! So, it's either you armed traps there, or you asked someone to do it for you! Just like how you forced Raphtalia to attack those other knights! You treated her like she was some kind of slave!" Before I could retort, Raphtalia stood in front of me.

"He did no such thing! I'm not some slave, either! He told you before that he didn't attack them, so why do you not believe him?! He's too kind-hearted to attack someone with malicious intent!" Raphtalia… nothing's going to convince them that I didn't do it...

"If he didn't do it, then-"

"...Raphtalia, let's go…"

"B-but-" Raphtalia wanted to give him a piece of her mind, I'm sure, but arguing like this won't solve anything. They're only going to continue putting the blame on me so I continue to look like a 'criminal'. Seriously, how low can these people get?

"It's fine, Raphtalia. They won't believe me, so we'll leave this place. They don't want me here, anyway…" Walking down the stairs, I was stopped by a knight who was holding a lance to my neck.

"...Stop, please. You don't want to do this." The knight was nervous, I could tell because the lance was shaking.

"Shield Hero, how long must I continue to deal with someone as disgraceful as you? You attacked my knight with your pesky little shield, and you dare snare up traps for them as well?! Do you hate my knights so much that you have to do something so cowardly?!" Cowardly? No, it wasn't even my fault, to begin with. Anything that happens to his precious knights would just be blamed on me, right?!

"I didn't put up any traps! One of the villagers told me that your knights, set up traps for the monsters! It was too close to the village and-"

"Enough! Enough of your insolence! You dare bring up an innocent villager as a cover-up for an excuse?! You disappeared from the town and into the forest for a month! Not once did you ever think of coming back until now! You've been planning your vengeance against us in that time period, correct?! I don't know how you set those traps, but I can tell that you forced that Demi-Human partner at your side to do it for you! No, not just her, I'm sure you affiliated yourself with terrorists from outside the kingdom!" Working with terrorists?! Does he know how crazy that sounds?!

"Terrorists?! We never-" Before she could finish her sentence, she had been gagged by a nearby knight.

"Hey, let her go!" Trying to move up the stairs to stop the knight, several knights joined up with the knight who held his lance to my neck. Now, I was surrounded…

Just like a month ago…

"You poor thing, you've must've suffered having to deal with the cruel Shield Hero. Now, you will be freed from his grasps after the Spear Hero challenges him into battle!" After saying that, everyone began to cheer as they wanted to see this fight. These… people! A month ago, he was seconds away from decapitating her head! How dare he try to look like the good guy, now!

"I trusted you, Jaune! And… you go behind our backs to do this?! Were you this pathetic in your-" Motoyasu wanted to taunt me, but I'm trying to deal with this, now. I've… I've…

I've had enough of the lies…!

"Fuck you!" My sudden outburst had managed to catch Motoyasu off-guard. I don't usually get angry like this, but they pushed me too far! They… they are all assholes! "You… lot continue to poke fun at me with your petty lies to try to make me look like the bad guy! And for what?! Because I'm the Shield Hero?! Because I can't fight?! Just so you all know, I was the one who decided to go to Lute Village because I noticed the explosions! I protected the people while you other lazy knights did whatever you wanted! If anything, I should be protecting the people outside the kingdom instead of you all! I'll take the challenge, but after that, I'm not having any more of this place's bullshit!" I know there were knights who decided to help me out, but regardless, they're knights. They only did to get their recognition...

"Is that so? And how do you plan to fight the Spear Hero without your one and only partner? Do you have to be this pathetic to rely so much on your partner to hold your hand?" Upon saying that, a crowd of people started to laugh at my misery. Is this what they do to the weak? Poke fun at them until they break from their shell? They call themselves a kingdom for 'brave warriors', but it's only a kingdom of lies!

"Shut up! When I win, I'm taking Raphtalia and leaving this place for good! Don't underestimate me, I still have some tricks up my sleeve!" A bluff? I couldn't tell; I was too angry to think of something that could potentially counter the spear's abilities…

I… can't fight without Raphtalia…

I stood behind a closed door in the arena. In this closed space, there were weapons in a barrel that couldn't be used by me. Because I could only use the shield, I can't pick up any other weapon to use. Hopefully, I'll-no, I'm SURE that I'll win this fight! After I have Raphtalia back at my side, we'll leave this kingdom! There are people in other villages that need our protection, anyway. I can't neglect the job I was handed to protect the people, so I will still participate in the Waves. It's just that… this place is starting to change me. I… have to leave this place so I don't change myself anymore!

As the doors opened, I walked out to the middle of the arena, only to have the people sitting on the sidelines booing. It doesn't matter, I just have to get this fight over with. When Motoyasu came out, of course, they started to cheer for him. Looking up at the king, I could see Raphtalia right behind him, tied and still gagged…

"This duel will take place in the presence of King Melromarc, and the Pope! It is thus legitimate and official…"

"Lord Motoyasu! Good luck with this battle!" After waving at her with a smile, Motoyasu focused a glare at me.

"Jaune, for Raphtalia's sake, yield! You won't win this battle against-"

"You know, Motoyasu, I trust the other two Heroes more than you, you know? Itsuki and Ren knew I would do anything for Raphtalia. You were there, right?! When they tried to murder her in cold blood!"

"...Tch. That's because she was by your side! However, that won't happen because I will be the one to protect her!" Getting into a stance, he prepared himself to attack me.

"...Sorry, Motoyasu, but if you keep believing in lies, then you won't make it far. Sorry, but Raphtalia has to stay with me! She won't be corrupted by this idiotic kingdom!" I had no stance, only determination. I have to watch his movements. He uses a spear so his distance against me is huge. How am I going to fight someone without any attacking abilities? Wait, I still have that, but… I shouldn't use it. It's… too dangerous to use, even in this environment. Calm down, Jaune, clear your mind and watch his movements...

I can't use it because I'm too afraid to use it…

It's dangerous…

"Grahhhhh!" Heading towards me with his spear, it didn't look like he had a plan; he was just going to blatantly attack me head-on!

*Clang!* *Clang!* *Clang!* *Clang!* With each blow that I blocked, I could feel how heavy his spear was against my shield. Was he stronger than me?

"Not bad, Jaune. It looks like you do have some experience with a shield!" As he was getting cocky, I pushed him back. I still have the Small Shield and I can still push him back!

"So that's the only thing you'll believe from me? Trust me, even without a weapon, this shield can do many things!" Standing straight, he dropped his stance. After that, his spear erupted with red and blue light.

"Try this, then! Chaos Spear!" Whatever he's planning, I can't give him the space to hit me!

"Leather Shield!" As the Small Shield turned into a small leather shield, I can feel my feet being a bit lighter. This shield was from those little rabbits. They were quick on their feet, so it makes sense that it gives me a speed boost. Taking the risk, I rushed at him head-on.

Leather Shield:

Agility: + 3

Defense: + 1

It didn't give me that much defense, but I should at least be fast enough to get close to him…!

"Hah!" Some of the attacks had grazed me at my cheek and shoulder, which caused some blood to leak from my body. Even so, I can take these attacks! Raising my fist, I sent it straight towards his gut.

"Kuh!" I might not have any offense, but I know he felt something from my punch…!

"Hah! What a fool! Attacking with just your shield?! You know that won't do anything to Lord Motoyasu, yes?!" The princess was full of herself to think that I would just attack him without a plan.

"Rope Shield!" Changing to the Rope Shield, I wrapped the rope around his right hand which holds his spear and started to swing him around me.

"H-hey, let me go!" Trying to cut the rope, it was useless. Since I had my rope around his hand, he won't be able to cut it. And so, I started to swing around like a ragdoll, faster and faster.

"Let go? Here, I'll let go!" With the amount of speed he had gained from being swung around in a circle, I retracted the rope, only for him to be sent to the wall.

"Well? Are you still going to underestimate the abilities of the Legendary Shield, now?! Stop this, Motoyasu, and we'll leave this place!" As I didn't hear him from the rumble, I could tell that he must've hit the wall hard.

"Does the Shield Hero really think he'll defeat the Spear Hero?!" A woman yelled, not believing what she was seeing. Do… they have money on us or something?

"From the looks of it, using the right tactics, it actually looks like he can!" A man exclaimed. Soon after, there was a crowd of people started to yell whatever they were trying to believe. I will win, Motoyasu will win, man, these people continue to get weirder and weirder, huh? Walking to Motoyasu, I looked to see if he was in any condition to fight back. I didn't want to kill him, I just want him down...

"...Tch!" Coming from the rumble, I could see that he was touching his back in agony. Looks like I put a number on him, huh?

"Yield, Motoyasu…"

"Yield? You think I'll just sit down and allow you to cause more harm to Raphtalia? No matter what, I will defeat you and protect Raphtalia!" He struggled to hold his spear correctly, and to that, I sighed. Turning the Rope Shield back into the Small Shield, I won this fight.

"King! He's in no condition to fight! This fight is over!" Looking up at the king, I could see him looking at me with a glare.

"Oh, I won't be so sure about that…" His glare soon turned into a grin; not understanding what he meant by that, I looked to Raphtalia who was shaking in her chair. Was she… trying to tell me something?

"You… shouldn't take your eyes off your opponent!" Quickly turning back, I could see Motoyasu starting to charge up his spear. It was enveloped with a red glow…

Crap, I don't have time to change my shield! I'm going to have to gain my distance…!

"You're finished!" As there was smoke being developed under his feet, I could tell that this could be his strongest attack, yet! I can't let that thing hit me! Trying to run away, he stood there with his glare focused on me.

Wait, what's the range of that attack…?!

Before I could try to gain more distance away from him, I felt a strong wind behind me push me into his direction. Wait, what the hell?! Did someone from the sidelines help him?! I can't get away now!

"Gah!" As a blue light erupted from his spear, it went straight through my chest. No matter how much defense I had, it still hurt like hell! Getting on my knee, I could still feel the burning in my chest. As I felt my aura trying to repair any damages I took- no, it didn't matter if I had my aura, it's like the attack went straight through it! It's… going to take some time to recover my aura back!

"Now, you yield!" After lowering his spear at my head, I could hear the cheers from the people on the sidelines. Itsuki… Ren… I wonder who you guys are cheering for…

Raphtalia was going to be taken away from me, and I'll have nothing left…

She'll be left here with these… assholes for who knows how long…!

If she stays here… she'll only suffer!

"I… can't lose here!" Pushing his spear away from my head with my shield, he jumped away from me. With a cocky grin, he settled his spear onto his shoulder.

"Heh, you can still fight back? Well, I'll admit it, you made me worried there a second ago. You might not have a weapon, but you put some damage on me!" I don't care what he says right now. All that matters…

...Is that I win!

"...Motoyasu, do you remember when I told you that I'll do whatever it takes to save my friend?" As I looked on my menu, I could see one shield that stood out from the rest of the other shields. Instead of white lining, this shield was in red lining. This series…

I hate it…

But… I have to win!

No matter the cost…!

"Huh? What, don't tell me you're holding something back, are you? Either way, it won't do anything to me!" Getting into a stance again, he prepared himself to attack me again.

"...Boarbatusk Shield." After changing shields, my head was sent into a spiral of emotions. No, these weren't my emotions! I… know these aren't! This… wasn't the place to use this shield!

Rage…

Boarbatsuk Shield:

?

?

?

?

No, it didn't matter if the menu didn't know what this shield could do. I, for one, know exactly what it does. This shield came from Grimm. Everything I'm feeling… is coming from the negativity from others. Or was it actually my own emotions that I'm losing control over? There's only one thing this Shield knows what to do:

It takes in raw negativity…

_Envy..._

_Why was it that they are the ones who get to be treated like actual Heroes…?_

_Why was it that I'm the one who has to suffer like this…?_

_Because I'm the Shield Hero…?_

_Because they look strong and I'm not…?_

_Why do they get the nice treatment, regardless of their past, while I'm the one who has to fight to earn my innocence…?_

_Hunters…_

_Heroes…_

_It just wasn't fair…_

_It's not fair…_

_It's not fair…_

_It's not fair…_

_It's not fair…_

_I deserve to be a Hero…!_

**"GRAGHHHHHHHHH!"** My head… it wasn't clear anymore. I couldn't think straight anymore. I could only think of how much I envy the other Heroes for what they have and what I don't have…

_"I don't remember hearing anything about the Shield Hero in the battlefield. Heh, the Shield Hero must've hid somewhere while the others did all the hard work for him…"_

_"So, it's either you armed traps there or you asked someone to do it for you! Just like how you forced Raphtalia to attack those other knights! You treated her like a slave!"_

_They're racist…_

_"You're the Shield Hero…"_

_"For what I know, anyone who uses the shield… are losers…"_

_"You're weak, Arc! You're never going to be a huntsman, so give up!"_

_"We shouldn't have summoned the Shield Hero…!"_

**Raphtalia, are you going to leave me? Because I'm weak? Because I'm the Shield Hero? Will you… despise me, too?**

**Everything… should just go black…**

.

.

Ẇ̛͙̭͙̰̮͓̖̻͚̄͆͑̽͆͡ṛ̶̢͉̱͙̞̫̲̀̈́̃͌̐̀̍̎͡͝a̵̢̲͍̪̞͑̆͊̃͒̅̈͛͋t̝͖̥͔̰͖͚͐̿̃͋̕͠ḧ̸̨̤̜͎̫̪̼̝́̒͆̿͛ S̸̨̨̺̼͙̫͉̆̔͆̓̀͛͢͢ȩ̶͚̟̝͈̄͊̐̈͗̑r̶̹̮̯̖̹̔̀͑͒͛̍͢͢͡i̸̛̮̪͕̤̹̝̩͊̄͊͂͐è̫̘͇̦̝͔̠̓̍̏̊̽̓̕͝͠ṡ̸̢͚̯̫͙̠̿̆̊̿̋̔́̔͂:͈̗̩̰̮͚͚͆́́̈́̓͒̚ U̡̨̬̭̣̩̹̠̎̾͐̆͝n̢͖̳̞̩͂͂̏́̍͆́l̴̬̜̗̟̼͈̆̅̽̒͟͟͟͞͞ͅọ̷̡͕̞̳̻̝͇̞̋̈́͊̈͟͝c̣̘̺̤͖̤̟͒̇̉̓͂̑̎̂͆͟k̯͔͍̼̫̻̀͒̇͡͞ͅe̢̻̦̥͈̥̺̍̂̒͘͝d̸̨͍̗̪͈̥̹̝̙̂̆̊̄̏̚͜͡

̶̡̩̣͇͉̼͖̗̫̄͗̃͐̒͊̏̽̕

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.

E͙̗̩̩̳̭̖̦͛̿̈̓͛̈́͂͛̓n̸̢̥̟̯͕̪͊̒̃̅̓͂̇̎͜͢v̸͇̣̲̟̟̌́̀͒̕͡ͅͅỹ̴̡̡̛̱̤̲̣̰̞͌̓͘ S̖̫̙̽͌͋̊̎͌̅́̚͜͜͜͢e̡̞̟̼̜̤͎͖̜͎̓͗̓́̍̇́̚͠r̶̨̨̳̙̙͕̮͕̥̬͌͌̀̃͂̓̔̔͞i̷͔̱̲̦̱͓̼͉͖̱͑͒̏̿̉̔̂̚͞e̶̢̻͈̯̭͉̻̥͐͑͗̀͐͌̃̈́̚s̨̤͉̰͓̄̇͊̋̑̋̈́͒̃̚ͅ:̢̞̘̪̮̂̉́̈́͛̇̒̓̈́̚͟͜ U̡̨̼͈̣̙͖̜̰̽̉͒̈͌̄̅͗͟ṇ̴̪͈̤͌̀͂̽͐͒̒͘͘͘͢ͅl̸̢͍͈̙̱̬̆̈̎̅͋́͋̀̐͟͟o̭̤͎̦̖̠̊̇͑͌́͆͝c̛̛̱̟̰̿͒́̐͋̕͢͜͞k̡̡̯̙̻̺̱͓̓̽̎͛̓̈́̽̎͢͝ę̨͉̪͖͔͖̣͙̦̓̐̂̽͞͝d̵̨̧̡̳̠̺̻͑̽͒̇̐͌͛̏͟͡

̡̹̠̲͔̮̙̓̈́̇̀̃

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Raphtalia

I… couldn't believe my eyes. Something… was happening to Mr. Jaune! When he started screaming, I noticed something was off about the shield he had was giant… and it was… like the monsters we fought from before! Those… tusk-like monsters!

"What's going on?! What's happening to the Shield Hero?!" As everyone couldn't believe their eyes, Mr. Jaune's body had been covered with white-like armor with a mask on his face. But… it wasn't like any normal mask or armor…

His face… was covered in a mask that resembled the tusk-like monsters we fought…

Mr. Jaune… what's happening to you?!

**"GRAGHHHHHH!"** When he screamed out again, I could feel… something negative about him. He… doesn't look like he has any control of himself!

"Guards, get the people out of here! Heroes, stop the Shield Devil!" Shield Devil? Is that what they're going to call him now? As the king gave his order, the guards move to get the 'innocent lives' away from the arena. Coming down from the sidelines, the other two Heroes prepared themselves to stop Mr. Jaune. Charging in blindly with his shield raised up, he maintained his focus on the Spear Hero. As the Spear Hero tried to block the attack with his spear, Mr. Jaune with his tusk-like shield had managed to get his spear stuck to his shield and disarmed him. After that, he punched him in the jaw. Was… Mr. Jaune going out of control?

Mr. Jaune… I need to help him…

I tried to break the rope that binds me to the chair, but it's too tight! Shaking the chair, I eventually fell onto the floor on the balcony I was currently at. The king and everyone who was with me had already left by now…

"Gah!" I could hear the Bow Hero's scream as it was of agony…

Mr. Jaune needs me…

"Damnit!" Hearing the Sword Hero aggressiveness, I heard the sound of a clang, hinting that he was back to fighting Mr. Jaune.

He needs me…

"JAUNE!" Hearing the Spear Hero cry out his war cry, I'm guessing he went back into the battle…

He needs me…

**"GRAGGGGHHHHH!"**

He needs me!

*Snap!*

"Mr. Jaune!" After getting the ropes off of me, I jumped off the balcony and landed onto the floor. All of the three Heroes were on the ground and defeated…

"Raph...talia, run away! He's too dangerous!" As I walked towards Mr. Jaune, I stopped next to the Bow Hero as he began to warn me of Mr. Jaune's… new shield abilities. The other Heroes had some scratches on them, but they were out of breath. Mr. Jaune is this strong…?

"I know. As he is right now, he's going to attack anyone he sees on sight. But… I know he won't harm me…" I walked towards him again, only for him to focus on my footsteps. On his face, was a white mask that was covered in crimson-like lining. Near the sides of the mask, were two eyes on each side, making a total of four eyes on the mask.

"Mr. Jaune…" With each step, I walked closer to him. With each step, he looked confused…

**"En...emy? En...emy? En...emy?"** Repeating those words over and over again, I continued to walk towards him. Setting a giant shield onto the floor, it came to life. The shield itself started to spin wildly, like those monsters we fought in the forest a long time ago. They were… called boar-something.

"Don't be a fool! Get away from him!" Hearing the Sword Hero cry to try and stop me, I ignored it and continued to walk towards him…

"Raphtalia…!" Ignoring the Spear Hero, I continued walking...

"Mr. Jaune, I'm right here. It's me, Raphtalia…" I've noticed that his hair had turned into pure black. Whatever's going on with Mr. Jaune, it's out of his control…

"**Raph...talia**? Raph...talia? Raphtalia? Is… that… you…?" I can hear his usual voice coming back. Is… he starting coming back to his senses? My… voice is working?

"Yes, it's me, Mr. Jaune, I'm here." I was beginning to close the space between us two. His shield had suddenly stopped, and attached itself back to his hand.

"I… can't see you, Raphtalia. Where are you? If… I don't… have **Raph..talia** with… me, who will be by my side?" He… can't see me?

"I'm right in front of you, Mr. Jaune. Listen to my voice and open your eyes…" Taking a step back, he seemed to be confused as he tried to find out where my voice is. What are you seeing, Mr. Jaune?

"**I can't! I can't see! Can't see! Can't see! Can't see! I can't see! Too dark! Too dark! Too dark! It's too dark!**" Putting his hands on the mask, he desperately tried to take off the mask that was covering his face. Giving up, he gets on his knees…

"**Too… dark.** I **can't see** you, Raphtalia…" It was like his voice was conjoined with a different entity. But even if it did sound like a different entity, they feel the same emotion…

Sadness...

Finally closing in the space between us, I touched his shield…

_It just wasn't fair…_

_It's not fair…_

_It's not fair…_

_It's not fair…_

_It's not fair…_

_I deserve to be a Hero…!_

_"I don't remember hearing anything about the Shield Hero in the battlefield. Heh, the Shield Hero must've hid somewhere while the others did all the hard work for him…"_

_"So, it's either you armed traps there or you asked someone to do it for you! Just like how you forced Raphtalia to attack those other knights! You treated her like a slave!"_

_They're racist…_

_"You're the Shield Hero…"_

_"For what I know, anyone who uses the shield… are losers…"_

_"You're weak, Arc! You're never going to be a huntsman, so give up!"_

_"We shouldn't have summoned the Shield Hero…!"_

_"I'm… a failure of a huntsman…"_

_"I'm sorry, Sweetie, but… maybe you stop trying to become a huntsman. Try doing something that's a bit more… safe, all right?"_

_"Now, Jaune, there are things that we might not be cut out for. You don't have to follow your grandfather's path, so I think it's best if you find your own dream…"_

"...It must've been hard, Mr. Jaune." Upon touching the shield, I could feel the rage, envy, and sadness he held within this shield. However… this rage was not his own. It's like… it came from multiple people…

"**Can't… see**. I'm… not weak. They're… racist. It's… not fair. I'm… a Hero…" With so many negative emotions, he's confused as to what to feel. As I could hear his voice become clear, I placed my hand onto the bottom of the mask, and pulled it up, revealing a red dulled-eyed Mr. Jaune. Soon after pulling it off, the mask disappeared into the wind, and his shield turned back into his original shield.

"I...**can see you.**.. Raph...talia." As his hand touches my cheek, it was almost as if he hadn't seen me in years. His eyes started to turn back into his regular blonde hair, but his right eye had managed to retain his original azure color. However, his left eye had still kept the color of crimson, but it was quickly covered by his hair. All I could see was his right eye now. Because of how dull he looked, I felt a tear come down from my eye…

"Yes… I'm here, Mr. Jaune. I will ALWAYS be here with you, Mr. Jaune. I will stand by the side of the Shield Hero..." Not holding back my tears any longer, they dripped onto the floor.

"I'm... not a Hero, Raphtalia. I haven't done anything that's worth being called a Hero for. The world hates the Shield Hero. I'm… only a burden that gets in the way of others…"

"That's not true, Mr. Jaune. Even when you didn't have a shield, you saved someone's life. You saved MY life, Mr. Jaune. I'm so grateful to have met you, Mr. Jaune. I don't think I'll ever meet someone as brave as you to take risks to save someone you cherish. You took the blame so you didn't want me to die, right Mr. Jaune? You decided to lie that you're a criminal because you did for me, right Mr. Jaune? With the number of risks you took, that shows that you're a Hero. Not only mine, but back at the Wave, you saved so many villagers lives that I couldn't count them. You ARE a Hero, Mr. Jaune."

"But… the world doesn't see me as one. I'm… only a criminal. They will never believe a criminal to be a Hero…" Cupping his cheeks, our foreheads touched each other…

"Mr. Jaune, let the world be as it may. If they refuse to believe that you're a Hero, then let them. If they choose to be in denial, then they won't know the truth. It doesn't matter if everyone doesn't believe you're a Hero, Mr. Jaune. Because… a world is created by its people, right? No matter if it's made from hundreds or thousands of people, it is a world. It could be one, two, or even three people that can create a world. But… if needed, then allow me to become the world that believes that you're a Hero, Mr. Jaune. Allow me to become your world, Mr. Jaune."

"My… world?" Seeing a tear start to fall from his azure eyes, I wiped it off from his face.

"I am your sword, Mr. Jaune. I am the wielder of the Crocea Mors, a sword that was passed down to me by you, and I WILL be whatever you want me to be because…"

"I am your world. No matter what, I'll be there to always protect you, Mr. Jaune. I will always believe that you will become the same kind-hearted Hero as you already are in the future. But most importantly, Mr. Jaune..." Mr. Jaune's azure eye started to leak tears. Wiping them away, I smiled.

"You need to believe in yourself." As color started to come back into his azure eye, it widened.

"Believe… in myself? I… have to believe in myself…" As more tears started to come out, I pulled him into a hug. It must've been hard, right, Mr. Jaune?

"It must've been lonely for you, right Mr. Jaune? No longer do you have to bottle your emotions away. It'll be nice to share some of your feelings with me every once in a while…" Ever since we left the castle for the first time, it was hard to tell if Mr. Jaune was angry. He… never once showed any kinds of anger to anyone. Bottling up his emotions, all I could see was that he was calm and collected. He showed signs of sadness, but he quickly replaces it with a smile when I speak to him.

This world had managed to change him by bottling up his emotions to make sure that he didn't show them how 'weak' he was. They hurt him, insulted him, made sure they break him to the point where they wanted him to actually believe that he was 'weak'. If it's for Mr. Jaune, then I'm going to fight against the world that hates both of us. Not only Demi-Humans, but the Shield Hero should never have to deal with such evil from this world.

I will no longer allow anyone to harm Mr. Jaune ever again…

...Even if I have to go against this kingdom...


	9. Race To The Finish Line

**(A/N)**

**Okay, I guess… this is when the Jaune starts to change a bit. Now, I know that looks a bit… OOC already because of his actions that he's been doing in Melromarc. I… forgot to mention this in the beginning, but the Jaune that everyone's reading in this story is the one after Cardin tells him that he knows of his transcripts and before he went on the trip to collect the sap. I made this Jaune into a more insecure person in the beginning because for all of his life, he kept thinking he wasn't good enough to become a hero, no matter how hard he tried. He wanted to do things on his own, without the help of his friends. I used that as material as to show how different Jaune could be without relying on his teammates. Turns out, without the proper help, he can only fall into more despair. And even when he was summoned to the new world, he was fed with lies that he wasn't needed to help out the other Heroes. That had only made his mentality worsen. Without Raphtalia, someone who actually believes that he's a hero for what he's done to help her, he wouldn't be the same Jaune as we all know. His mentality was already like pieces of a broken mirror. Raphtalia just had to pick them up for him so he could see what was already in front of him… someone who has the potential of becoming a hero. Sorry, sorry, and I'm truly sorry. I know some people might not like that way of thinking for Jaune, but I think it's a bit realistic for him. Sorry, but this is just my way of think of him.**

**Now, for the Wrath and Envy Shield Series. I kind of think that these shield series are necessary because of the emotions that he was feeling. Wrath because of the mistreatment of him and Raphtalia and envy for the other Heroes. Not only them, but Jaune did envy other hunters in training because of his lack of fighting capabilities. They had the training and skills while he didn't. He never had the chance to train like his sisters or any other hunters in training. **

**Now, will we be seeing these shields often? As of what I'm thinking, not right now. If he would use one of them, it would be envy since he can easily overcome envy. To me, if anything, since Jaune is not exactly built from anger and wrath. He wouldn't be using his anger as a weapon unless he his comrades are in danger. He's going to have be brought into situations to become bold. But when pushed too far, he will express what he's feeling without hesitating, like the anger he had when he was blamed for another lie. However, it's going to be hard to control it since there's 'something' getting in his way. Jaune is smart, I can agree with that. Even I'm sure he can use the other shields in a way where he could actually fight without using those two shields for now.**

**Now… what happened to Jaune? Well, you're going to have to read to find out…**

**(Warning: He will be a bit OOC, but not too much. From time to time...)**

My left eye… it burns. I don't know why, but it burns. Opening my eyes, I could see that I was laying on a soft bed. My surroundings slightly resembled a cabin of some sort, but at least I'm in some sort of shelter. I… felt strange. Was it weird for my body to feel _this _light? As I got off the bed, I looked outside the window to see that I'm currently in the presence of villagers. Wait, this place looks familiar… this is Lute Village! They're already begun their reconstruction?

"_Did you hear that they brought the Shield Hero here? I heard that they call him the Shield Devil, now. I'm a little worried." _My eye started to begin burning again when the random person said that he was worried. What? What was I hearing right now?

"_The king said he started to attack anyone he had in his sight, including the Spear Hero! Can you believe that?!" _As I took a peek outside again, I could see a man and woman talking to one another while the man was lifting a barrel. How am I hearing them when they're outside? The windows closed, so I shouldn't be able to hear anything. All of a sudden, I felt a wave of emotions pile within me…

Sadness and loneliness…

I don't know why I felt those emotions within me, but I can tell that they weren't mine. Ranging from children to adults, I could feel those emotions because of their loved ones. Walking away from the window, I've noticed that my body was starting to glow white. This was my aura. With each thought and emotion I felt from the villagers, my aura glows brighter. Why was my aura starting to act like this? All of a sudden, thoughts of yesterday started to burn my left eye started to burn again and my aura dropped.

...What?

_Boarbatusk Shield:_

_Processing Information: 90%_

_Effect: Draw in the feelings of negative and positive emotions from within the user and those around you causing increase of stats. All defense capabilities increased. All negative emotions that affects the user are greatly lowered._

_Physical Defense Up _

_Magic Resistance Up _

_Hate Reaction 1 _

_Ability Efficiency 1 _

_Team Agility 1 _

_Wrath Resistance 1_

_Envy Resistance 1 _

_Alert 1 _

_Special Ability: Boarbatusk Roll _

_Side Effect: Loss of Emotion? Corrupted... Information to be revealed..._

Loss… of emotion? What does that mean? And what did Wrath and Envy Resistance mean? "Mr. Jaune, I'm back!" As I heard the voice of Raphtalia, for some reason, my body felt… weird. I can't describe the feeling, but it just felt weird. My heart… keeps on beating for some reason, it won't stop. Whatever this feeling was, it was making my heart continue to beat faster and louder by the second. This feeling… it's like I've never felt it before…

"Mr. Jaune?" Upon opening the door slightly, Raphtalia peeked inside. From wonder to happiness, she fully opened the door, revealing that she was holding a bowl of food.

"Mr. Jaune, you're up!" As she started walking to me, for some reason, the feeling was starting to get stronger and stronger…

"W-wait, d-don't get too close!" Jumping onto the bed, I was… starting to feel afraid. Why was I afraid? Why was I starting to become afraid of Raphtalia? I was… drawing in 'something' from me her, but I can't understand what that 'something' is. Out of everyone's emotions that I was feeling, hers was the strongest.

"Mr. Jaune? Are you all right? Your… shield turned into that weird-looking one from 6 days ago." Looking to my right, I could see that the shield had already changed into the Boarbatusk Shield. When did that happen? And plus… did she say 6 days ago?

"I-I don't know. I just… feel weird that's all. A-anyway, d-did you say 6 days ago or something like that?" Why was I stuttering? Was I _that _afraid of Raphtalia? No, it can't be. It must be this stupid shield that's making me feel this way!

"Well… for first, no wonder you're feeling strange. You have some ears on your head…" She tried her best to not look at them with a reddened face, but she continued to look at them. Why was she looking at me like that?! It's making me feel even more weird! Stop looking at me, Raphtalia!

...Ears?

E-ears on my head?! Touching my head, I could feel two fluffy-feeling ears on the top of my head. It was… like I became a Demi-Human! Why do I have two pairs of fluffy ears on my head?!

"Why do I have ears on my head, Raphtalia?! Get them off!" As I began to pull on them, I was starting to feel pain. There WAS ears on my head! "H-hold on, Mr. Jaune! Don't hurt yourself!" Setting the food down, she started to approach me. As she began to come closer to me, the feeling began to get even stronger! When did Raphtalia start to look… so… no, nevermind! "W-wait, n-nevermind, R-Raphtalia! I'm turning off this stupid shield!"

The moment I reverted the shield back to its original form, the feeling instantly disappeared. No more random emotions, and no more weird… feelings. Not only that, but the ears that were on my head at disappeared, too. So all of that stuff that just happened was just because of the Boarbatusk Shield?!

"Mr. Jaune? Are… you okay?" Raphtalia said with a concerned voice.

"Yeah… it was all because of the Boarbatusk Shield. Sorry that I-"

"I was so worried!" Before I could finish my sentence, Raphtalia hugged me down into the bed. With how fast she was, I almost had the wind knocked out of me. Did she get stronger or something? Right now, she currently laying over me.

"R-Raphtalia!" I wanted to speak more than that, but when I heard a sniff from her, I stopped talking.

"Do… you know how worried I was?! When I first saw you… change, I was scared that you might not come back to your senses! Don't scare me like that again!" I rubbed the back of her head as she continued to cry.

"I know… and I'm sorry. I… had to use it so I could save you. I'm sorry."

"I know… you always do these things for me. So… I decided that I wanted to do something for you." "Do something for me"? What exactly did she mean by that?

"Did you do something, Raphtalia?" After asking that, Raphtalia started to toy with her hair with her reddened cheeks before getting off the bed to walk towards a nearby dresser. Digging into it, she pulled out a bag that looks to have coins in there.

"500 silver coins, Mr. Jaune." 500 silver coins? Where did she even get that money from?

"Raphtalia, where did you get that money from?" Sitting back down on the bed, she handed me the bag and took a deep breath. Don't tell me she did something illegal!

"I… went back to the castle, Mr. Jaune." Upon saying that, I grabbed her shoulders and forced her to look into my eyes.

"Raphtalia, why?! I thought we were going to leave this place after I saved you!"

"I… went back to get the reward that was supposed to be given to us, Mr. Jaune. But I… didn't go alone. I met the Bow and Sword Hero while I was walking there and they were kind enough to walk me to the castle. I… wanted to go because of your absence, Mr. Jaune." Itsuki and Ren walked her there? I guess I should be grateful for escorting her there safely. I'll thank them when I meet up with them another day.

"So… what happened? You didn't have any problems with the king, right?" I already knew that the king had a problem with us, but hopefully, he didn't do anything that made her uncomfortable. When she nodded her head, my expression saddened, causing my left eye to start to burn again. No, Raphtalia was here, and that's all that matters. She doesn't have a scratch on her, so I shouldn't feel sad.

"He was going on and on about how much of a monster you turned into. He also said that he shouldn't support the 'Shield Devil' anymore and he shouldn't even think about giving the reward to his 'pesky Demi-Human', so I… got a little upset. I yelled at him saying that if it wasn't for kidnapping me, then the fight wouldn't have escalated like that. I also told him that the princess had cheated by using wind magic on you when you were trying to back away from the Spear Hero. He refused to believe it, but the Bow and Sword Hero said that they saw as well. Eventually, after a long argument… I got the silver coins."

That… was a lot to take in. First, he's starting to call me the 'Shield Devil', and soon, that's going to hurt my reputation. No matter, let them call me whatever they want. I'm not going to fall into despair and anger again. Second, Raphtalia screamed at the king. I am seriously proud of her, right now. And third, we got the reward that was promised to us. It looks like it turned out to be a swell day, hasn't it?

"Well, I guess that was an eventful day for you, right, Raphtalia? I mean like, when did this happen?"

"Well, before that, you should know that after you… changed, I had to take you to a place that was safe. And that very place, was Lute Village. It was dark out, so I expected monsters to appear, but the Bow Hero was kind enough to escort me to the village. He said he was doing it because he was grateful that I managed to stop you from rampaging any longer. The people of Lute Village were kind enough to let you stay, too. After giving us a house to stay in for a bit, the next day, I headed out for the castle. So… it was about 5 days ago." So, I was asleep for 6 days? And… I was rampaging against the other Heroes? How could I? I… have to apologize to them, even Motoyasu. I thought I could control the Boarbatusk Shield, only for me to go into a rampage. If Raphtalia didn't stop me, I don't even know if he was going to be killed… or I was going to be killed.

I acted like a Grimm...

"Did… anything else happened after that?" After asking that, Raphtalia's ears perked up. Still adorable, no matter what age she looks…

"Oh yeah! I remember some people asking for you because they wanted to express their gratitude! We should head over there immediately!" She looked excited, I wonder why…

"Why the sudden excitement? It's… weird hearing that the people from the town being grateful for what I did…" Scratching the back of my neck, it was kind of to believe if that was true or not. I'm not dreaming, right? They're people that _want _to meet me?

"I'm happy because I'm happy for YOU! Because you saved Lute Village, you're starting to get recognized for what you've done, Mr. Jaune! Aren't you happy?!" Hugging me again, I felt her hands wrap around my stomach as she rested her head on my shoulder. So… there are people waiting to meet me? That's…

"Great! We should probably start heading out now, then!" Getting up from off the bed, I was ecstatic to go meet those people! As long as they didn't care if I was a 'criminal', then I guess that's fine, then!

"Gwah!"

…

…

...

"I'm sorry, did you say something, Raphtalia?" Turning to Raphtalia, her face reddens in embarrassment while she points to the window. So… it wasn't her? If not, then what can make that cute and adorable sound? Turning back to the window, I was greeted with-

"Holy cow!" From the window, there was a creature with a long neck peeking its head inside the house we were currently in. The creature was white, and it had blue eyes. Okay, what's going on here?!

"That's not a cow, Mr. Jaune, this creature is a Filolial. I got her from… a weird-looking guy 5 days ago. After leaving the castle, I went to town to be confronted by this short creepy-looking man that said that you were able to save some of his merchandise that was residing in Lute Village. He told me he was a merchant and he recognized me by saying that an associate of his had told him that I was your partner and he wanted to give us something as a reward for saving his merchandise. His reward was a Filolial egg for free because of how grateful he was."

Merchant, huh? I… don't remember seeing goods at Lute Village since nearly everything was on fire, but oh well, he was grateful enough to give us this… Filolial for free, so I guess it's fine.

"Wait, but he gave you an egg, right? So… how did it grow this much?" As I was near the window, the Filolial licked my face. I… guess she likes me, doesn't she?

"Well… it's a bit hard to tell. After that day, I decided on gaining some levels, but before I left, she was born. Not wanting her to be alone with you with no food, I decided on taking her with me. I didn't know this before, but I didn't know Filolial can join our party upon being born. After feeding her, I took her to the fields and started to kill monsters to get stronger. After an entire day of gaining levels… she was growing at a weird rate. Yesterday, she suddenly grew up into a full-grown Filolial."

"So… she grew up in 4 days? That has to be crazy. I don't know if it's because the Filolial was in my party, but she… shouldn't be able to grow that fast, right?" Raphtalia shook her head to answer my question. Looking at the party menu, I could see that we were… wait, did that say that she's 25 while I'm 23?! Filo was sixteen, so I guess that's to be expected. When we fight monsters in the Wave, we still progress in levels. We stopped at… 21 and 23 at the end of the Wave. Oh, I forgot that when a party member kills a monster, the entire party earns the EXP. Thanks to Raphtalia, we were able to get stronger because of her hard work.

"So… what should we name her?" Raphtalia asked. It took me a couple of seconds to think of something, but I guess I'll start with something small.

"Filo." Raphtalia gave me a weird look after saying the name.

"...You're not good with names, are you, Mr. Jaune?"

"I don't see you coming up with one... " Noticing a egg that was cracked open on the counter, that probably is the egg that Filo was born in. Maybe... I should put those components into the Legendary Shield?

"...Filo it is, then."

* * *

"You have rare affinity for healing and support, Sir Shield Hero. Your friend here has affinities of light and dark magic. Since you're half-raccoon, make sure you learn some illusion magic, okay, Dear?" The lady we decided to visit first was the first on Raphtalia's list. She looked like a magician, too. Well, I kind of knew that my kit was based on support, so I guess it isn't that much of a surprise. Well, I guess I should try and focus on creating some better potions for healing and support. SP increase, HP increase, my mind will not stop thinking of ideas of how I could support Raphtalia in the battlefield.

"Thank you, we're very much grateful for telling us this." Our affinity is basically our magic. Because I'm the Shield Hero, I classify in healing and support, and because Raphtalia's half-raccoon, she had light and dark. I wonder if her magic will change her personality?

"Now, here you go, Sir Shield Hero!" As she set a book onto the table, Raphtalia raised her hands up.

"Oh, we don't really have enough money to purchase a magic grimoire." So she was about to give us a magic grimoire? Isn't that those books that teach someone who to use magic or something like that?

"Oh, don't you worry, Dear. Since you both saved my grandchild, I'll give you both something this important! I would've preferred to give you both a crystal ball instead of this!"

"What's that?" I asked out of curiosity. Back in Remnant, those crystal balls were meant for some… future-telling stuff like that. I didn't believe it, but since we're in a different world, it's a serious object to know about.

"Oh, you didn't know? Each and every crystal ball contains magic sealed within it. When you use it, you call the magic from within it! I hear that all of the Heroes were supposed to be given it from the Royal Court. Anyway, magic from a magic grimoire is very difficult! If you try and try, I'm sure both of you will be able to use them wisely! They're many spells in this book, be sure to try your best, you two!" She seems happy for us to try and learn from it, so I guess we'll give a shot.

"...But there's a problem…" Upon saying that, they looked at me with confused expressions.

"Oh? And what will that be, Sir Shield Hero?" Nervously laughing a bit, I scratched the back of my head.

"I can't read the language from this world…" They stared at me for a bit, before laughing. What, was it something I said that was funny?

"Mr. Jaune, don't worry about that. I'm sure that if we took our time trying to learn the language, I'm sure we'll be able to read it and use its magic!" Learn the language, huh? Well, I was hoping for a method or skill that allows me to read the book without that much effort, but if Raphtalia wants to learn it, then I guess we'll learn it together, then.

"Hey, Old Hag, are you finished speaking to the Shield Hero? I've gotta give him something!" Opening the front door, came an old man that had a book to give us.

"Oh, how rude of you! I was just about done speaking to him, can't you wait for a couple of minutes?!" It seems… the two of them know each other well.

"Sorry, but I gotta hurry. Here, Shield Hero, I got ya something." Walking up to me, he handed me a book. It didn't look like a magic grimoire, but it had to be of some meaning to him if he's giving this to me.

"What's this?" Upon opening it, I couldn't read the language, but I could see images of potions. This was a potion book?! If I could understand the language, then I'll be able to learn different kinds of potions!

"I have some old relatives of mine that lives in Lute Village. They were the ones who told me that the Shield Hero had saved the village with his partner. It might not mean that much to you, but this book can teach very fine medicines to create for battle. Learn it, read it, use it." With that, he started to walk back to the door.

"Um, thank you very much!" Hearing me, he turned to me.

"Oh, and one other thing: you're not as I expected you to be. If you were truly a criminal, then you wouldn't have decided on saving Lute Village. Thanks, Kid." With that, he walked out of the shop.

"My, what a rude fellow, is he not?!" The lady was visibly upset at the man, but for what reason? I wouldn't know.

"I heard that! Oh, and one other thing, Shield Hero," Opening the door back open, the old man walked back into the shop. The lady let out a 'Hmph!' before glaring at him. They _really _know each other, don't they? "Earlier, I watched some of the knights from the kingdom along with the Spear Hero, heading towards Lute Village. I wouldn't think too much of it if it wasn't for the fact that I have some relatives there, so could you please check it out? Something within me is telling me that it means trouble. With that princess with them, it can _only _mean trouble. I never liked her anyway." Motoyasu and the princess were heading to Lute Village? What for?

"All right, we'll go check it out. Thank you for telling us." The old man smirked at me before walking back to the door again.

"Oh, and make sure you give em' hell, all right? Show them what it means to be a TRUE Hero, okay?" He left the shop again. This time, I think it was for good.

"'A true Hero, huh? All right, I guess we should start heading out, right, Raphtalia?" Smiling at her, she smiled back. We started to head towards the door for our next destination.

"Have safe travels, Sir Shield Hero. Be sure to come back if you need anything, okay?" Smiling at her, I waved as a goodbye. This… is what it's like to be recognized as a Hero, huh? I could get used to this!

Hopping onto Filo, who was waiting outside for us, we were ready to head towards Lute Village! As Raphtalia wrapped her hands around my stomach, we were prepared for something scary now...

"Okay, now, Filo, be sure to go there a bit more carefull-yyy!"Without any warning, Filo started to head towards the village in a full-sprint.

"FILOOOOOO!" All that we could do is yell out Filo's name as she happily "Gwah!" her way there…

* * *

"In light of his exploits in the night of the last Wave, the Spear Hero, Sir Motoyasu has been appointed ruling lord of this region. As Filo finally stopped running, we were in the back of a crowd who was wondering why the princess and Motoyasu was there. Turns out, they're giving the land to… Motoyasu?! What did he do here?!

As the wind blew his hair, he smiled at the crowd, expecting to hear some cheers. Okay, I'm debating if I should apologize for what I did to him on the day I attacked him. "To help the rebuilding efforts, we will levy a toll. This toll will be 50 silver coins to enter the village, and 52 silver coins to leave the village." Okay, now that's just cruel!

"Are you crazy?! We won't have any left to buy any food!" A man exclaimed.

"How will be able to live without any silvers left?!" Another man exclaimed.

"Why should the Spear Hero be in charge?! It was the Shield Hero who saved our village!"

"Yeah, the other Heroes didn't even come to help us besides the Shield Hero!" As I heard the crowd began to start yelling at the two, I can't help but smile. These people were actually on my side. Instead of the Spear Hero, Motoyasu, they wanted me, the Shield Hero to rule the region instead of him. I can't say that I know how to rule a region, but I'm happy they would recommend me over them.

"You dare defy your lords orders?! If it were not for the other Heroes, the Wave wouldn't have ended! How dare you favor the Shield Devil over-"

"Excuse me, but I'm right here, you know." Announcing myself, everyone turned to look at me. The villagers were happy with my appearance, but the soldiers including the princess weren't so happy as they glared at me. With those glares, I felt my left eye begin to burn again. Why… was it starting to hurt again? Is it because of their negative emotions? It was hatred…

"-instant you miserable criminal?!" As I snapped out of my thoughts, I could hear the princess finishing whatever she had to say to me. Whatever it was, it was probably insults. The hatred was still there, but I chose to ignore it. I can't let myself go into a rampage because of negative emotions again. That'll only prove that I'm like the Grimm.

"...Motoyasu, I will like to begin with that I'm sorry for losing my composure back at that duel. I had no control over myself as I was filled with negative emotions. However, whatever you're doing here is wrong! Do you know how much it will cost for someone to spend a night at the inn, here?" Motoyasu was quiet, but with his wavering eyes, I can tell that he didn't know.

"It costs-how much does it cost?" I whispered to the closest villager next to me. "1 silver coin with food included." "It costs 1 silver a night with food included! You do the math, you're basically charging the villagers a total of 100 nights just enter and exit the village! You don't want that, right?" I didn't know the price, I was asleep for 6 days!

"Well…" Just like I thought, he might be a Hero, but he's being manipulated by the king and the princess. He will only listen to what they say, no matter if he wants it or not. He's failing at be a Hero and failing as a person.

"Silence, Shield Devil! As if he would listen to the man who tried to kill him! Enough of this!" Raising her hand, the soldiers surrounding them had raised their weapons at the villagers. Seriously, how much longer do I have to deal with these disrespectful idiots?

"Threatening your own people? Are you insane?!" As much as I wanted to continue, a group of people covered in cloaks landed right in front of the princess. Who are they?

"Princess Malty, I believe you know who we are?" Malty's her name, huh? Well, I guess that doesn't matter.

"Yes, but WHY are you here?" With seething anger, it looks like she didn't like those people. Her anger… crap, I'm starting to feel it again…

"...For you." Handing her a scroll of some sort, the princess opened it to read it.

"Mr. Jaune, do you know who they are? Their movements… they're silent." So… Raphtalia didn't even sense them? These cloaked people might be considered as ninjas, then…

"...Don't know, but it looks like the princess doesn't like what she's reading. Hah..." Her anger was starting to grow stronger and stronger as she continued to read the message. As my breathing was starting to get uncontrollable, my left eye continue to burn. This… is the side effect of using the Boarbatusk Shield, right? It… turned me into something that's close to being a Grimm…

Wait, Boarbatusk Shield…

"Mr. Jaune? Are you all right? You're breathing rather weirdly…" Raphtalia noticed my breathing pattern was off, so she put her hand on my shoulder to see if I'm okay.

"Yeah… just a bit under the weather, right now…" I'm… going to have to change into the Boarbatusk Shield. I remember reading something about Rage Resistance in the Boarbatusk's ability tree. It was strange, this shield hasn't unlocked any other series related to it, either. This shield was an anomaly…

"Are you sure?" Okay… I'm going to have to ignore the anger for as long as I can. I'll change into the Boarbatusk Shield later on…

"How can this be?! Shield Hero! You are to challenge the Spear Hero, Lord Motoyasu in a race for this village!"

Ah, isn't that just great... ?

"The race will be two laps around the outskirts of the village! Whoever reaches this gate first will be declared the winner! Fair enough rules, I just hope that they don't cheat.

"Be safe, Mr. Jaune! And don't push yourself, all right?" Looking back at Raphtalia, I smiled to reassure her that I was going to be alright. Well, to be honest, I actually wasn't. The negative emotions from the soldiers and the princess was taking a toll on me. I could barely focus without thinking too much on how annoying they were with their rage. Their rage was starting to make me upset…

"Motoyasu, good luck!" Okay, it might be my rage, I'm starting to find her voice _very _annoying, right now. I didn't have that much dealing with her rudeness without the rage…

"On your marks! Get set…" Riding on Filo wasn't going to be that much of a problem. Just hold onto her neck, and I'll be alright. She has some uncontrollable speed, so I don't think Motoyasu will be a problem with his dragon.

"Go!" On that mark, Filo started running. We were already ahead of Motoyasu, so I think I was right! We can beat them without any problems!

"Let's hurry up and end this, Filo!" I was cocky, but I think that since I have Filo, we'll be able to outrun Motoyasu's dragon. As I turned around to see where he was at, he wasn't that far behind. He was eating dust, but he was still not that far behind.

Turning back in front of me, I could see that we were already almost at the gate for the first lap. However, as I noticed that we were almost at the front gate, there was… a hole in front of us?!

"Filo, hold on!" Tugging too hard on the reins, I accidentally managed to force Filo to stop by falling onto the ground. Because of that accident, Motoyasu managed to pass us without any problems. So he didn't have problems with a hole? Something about this screams 'cheating'. Damnit, sorry, Filo…

"We can come back from this, Filo! Let's go!"

"Grrr!" As Filo got back up, she was instantly ready to catch back up to Motoyasu. As we passed the gate for the first lap, I heard the soldiers and the princess cheering for him, but I've noticed Raphtalia's saddened expression. Not only her, but the villagers as well. Their emotions was starting to get to me now...

"...Tch, faster, Filo, faster!" Without hesitating, Filo was already for it when she was ready to show her speed off. In a second, we had already passed Motoyasu.

"Don't look down on us, yet, Motoyasu!" After passing him, Filo had looked back at the dragon with a smirk. Um, I think Filo might have some kind of grudge against this dragon…

Suddenly, Filo was starting to get slower as we were about to make our first turn around the outskirts. Wait, why was Filo starting to get slower? She had much more speed than this when we went passed Motoyasu, so why is she slowing down? Is she starting to become tired? No, that couldn't be…

Unless…

As Motoyasu with his dragon passed us, Filo was smacked in the face with the dragon's tail…

"Hah! "'Don't look down on us, yet, _Jaune_!'" After she was knocked back a bit from the dragon's tail, I noticed that a nearby bush had moved slightly. Oh, so now I get it. Okay, Motoyasu, you can mock me all you want, but the moment you attack Filo over this stupid race…

You signed your own losing permit…

"Boarbatusk Shield!" If they wanted to cheat and lie their way into winning, then I have no other choice but to accept the challenge…

Feeling the emotions of all of the people from the village, that included the princess, the soldiers, Motoyasu, and the villagers, I felt my aura begin to spike. Not only that, but I felt ears begin to form on my head. Sadness and anger, they were the emotions that I was feeling from them altogether. They… made me feel stronger! No longer did I feel their negative emotions restricting me! These emotions are now my strength!

Let's see what this Team Agility 1 can do…

* * *

Raphtalia

I could see the Spear Hero on his dragon in the distance, I could only be concerned. Where's… Mr. Jaune and Filo? How come I don't see them anymore? They were neck and neck earlier, but how come Mr. Jaune and Filo disappeared?

Are they… cheating?

Did… they do something Mr. Jaune and Filo…?

Looking at the princess, I can see her grinning at the closest soldier next to her. They looked TOO cocky enough that they were already smiling upon seeing Motoyasu. It was almost as if they KNEW that they were going to win from the start. I see…

...So, they planned something ahead of the race's preparations…

"...Princess Malty, correct?" I walked across the road to where the princess was to see if my suspicion was correct.

"...Tch, what do you want, Demi-Human?" Her voice spat out venom. However, her venomous voice doesn't affect me.

"I will like to know why during the first lap, that Mr. Jaune and Filo fell down to the ground. Do you know _anything _of it?" If anything, since she's the daughter of the ruler of Melromarc, she would probably lie about it, to protect her pride. However, what she didn't know…

Is that the people who were wearing those cloaks from before had already disappeared...

"You dare accuse me of cheating, filthy Demi-Human?!" Right on her cue, a soldier decided to stand in my way. With his cocky grin, he most likely thinks he can stop me if he wanted to…

I watched my comrades get harmed into the midst of this race… there should be no reason as to why I shouldn't confront her to know if she's cheating…

"Well, well, aren't you a bit hot-headed, Demi-Human? Now, what's this about cheating? The outskirts has some… challenging parts on the road especially that specific part of the outskirts. The Shield Devil and his Filolial probably fell down because of that." Challenging parts… is that so?

"...Is that so? If that is true, then why was it the Spear Hero had no trouble with those "challenging parts"? Wouldn't he at least have some trouble as well? It seems _too _suspicious that-"

"Heh, the Shield Devil's pathetic Filolial probably wasn't smart enough to ignore stepping stones. A dragon has WAY more intelligence than a brain-dead Filolial. Now then, run along, Demi-Human. Run away with your two between your legs as you watch the TRUE Hero, Lord Motoyasu win this race." With a cocky smirk, he tries to taunt me…

"...You can insult me however you like because I'm a Demi-Human, but I will not stand idly when my comrades are being insulted by anyone." He laughed almost as if he was accepting a challenge. Reaching to his hilt of his sword, he was prepared to fight.

"Oh, really? And what are YOU going to do about it?"As I started to walk back a bit, he continued to step towards me. Stepping a bit closer to me, he was a bit in the road where the race was supposed to finish at. I almost reached for the hilt of my sword, but it wouldn't be wise to just randomly start a fight in the middle of a race.

"...I hope you get what's coming to you in the future." I then walked back to the villagers side of the road.

"Like I said, run away with your tail between you-urk!" Seeing nothing but smoke where he once stood, I looked to the direction where he went. What was that? It was too fast that I couldn't see it!

"The… rope has been cut!" The announcer of the race had turned to see that the rope had been cut. But… from what? Had Motoyasu's dragon increase so greatly that I couldn't even see it?

"What?! Impossible!" As Motoyasu and his dragon finally passed the gate, he looked astonished.

"So… fast!" As I heard him say that, I looked to where the smoke had stopped, only to reveal that Mr. Jaune was on the floor while Filo was poking at him to see if he was all right. Wait, that was Filo?! How did she get so fast?!

"Mr. Jaune!" Running towards him, I could see that he was on the ground, but had no injuries. But what I did notice... was the giant shield that Mr. Jaune had on his right arm. Was he… the cause of Filo's sudden speed? Not to far away from him, was the knight who insulted Mr. Jaune and Filo. He wasn't dead, but he looked to be passed out. Hmph, serves him right.

"Ow. I guess Filo went too fast that I couldn't control her…" Kneeling next to him, I noticed the blonde animal-like ears that was on his head. With his eyes closed, he started to laugh.

"Mr. Jaune? Are you all right?" As he opened his eyes, his face immediately reddened. His face reddened again! Just like this morning!

"R-Raphtalia?! I-I'm fine, thanks for asking! L-look, could you… back away from just a bit?" Sitting up a bit, his ears started to twitch wildly as his face continued to redden. He's even beginning to stutter like crazy… what's wrong with him? Unless I ask him directly, then I won't know.

"I will not." Refusing his request had made his face reddened even more. Was he coming down with some fever?

"Wha-? W-why not?!" Even when he sounds like that, why does he look happy?

"Mr. Jaune, are you having some sort of fever?" Putting my hand on his head, I felt that he was freezing! What is going on with Mr. Jaune?! Flinching a bit from my touch, his ears continued to twitch. It looked… cute. Mr. Jaune looks cute when he acts like this…

Wait, what am I saying?!

"S-sorry, Mr. Jaune…" Taking my hand away, his expression saddens as he diverts his attention elsewhere. After the announcer announced that Mr. Jaune was the winner, the villagers were happy enough to start hugging each other.

"...Touch me again…" His unusual request made my face feel hot. Did he… ask me to touch him again?

"Huh?"

"Touch me again…" Looking back at me, I could see his azure eye and crimson eye glisten as he asked me to touch him again. Why does he look so shy? This w-wasn't anything like the normal Mr. Jaune! Is it because of the shield he equipped?

"O-okay…" The look he was giving me was sort of irresistible. Patted between his two animal-like ears, he started to look satisfied. This is… unlikely of Mr. Jaune to act like this.

"Are you… okay, Mr. Jaune?" I continued to pat his head which made his expression to greatly brighten. He… almost acts like a kid! All of a sudden, a green light develops from Filo. Shielding my eyes with my free hand, all that was left of Filo was…

A… giant Filo?!

"I'm… satisfied!" Seconds after saying that, his expression instantly straightens as he looked to his left, which stood the princess of Melromarc with her army of knights behind her.

"You… cheated, Shield Devil! Whatever you did, you got an unfair advantage by increasing your Filolial's speed! I can for a-"

"Shut up." Mr. Jaune said with a blunt voice. Due to how sudden he said it, I looked at him with shocked eyes. The princess's face only reddened in anger…

"How dare you! I've had enough of you! Knights! Restrain the-"

"You say that I cheated, but what about the holes that miraculously appeared in the first lap? What about the sudden reason why Filo started to slow down? If anything, you CHEATED, but if I wanted to win this race, I had to fight cheat with cheat. You use magic, I use magic." Jaune admitted that he cheated, but he explained that she had cheated first. So… who wins the race?

"Indeed, it has been both sides who had cheated…" Out of nowhere, the group suddenly appeared again. The woman must be the leader…

"What?! I don't know what he's talking about?! He admitted that he cheated, so we should be the ones-" What looked to be the leader of the group, the woman raised her head to look at the princess in the eye.

"However, the rules of the race were to not use magic to have advantage of the other contestant. We've detected signs of magic from both sides; however, the first trace of magic were not connected to the magic affinities that the Shield Hero and his raccoon friend. The Shield Hero has support and healing, while his raccoon friend has light and dark. Now, since the Spear Hero's party cheated first, we will be declaring that the Spear Hero to have lost the race." They… know of our magic affinities? But… the only person who knew of them was the lady that we met in the magic shop! How could they know so much about us?!

"What?! How can we lose the race even though they had-"

"'Some rules are meant to be broken'. Those were the words you told me a long time ago, correct? The moment you used magic, you broke the rules, Princess Malty. The Spear Hero's party loss had already been decided the moment we detected magic in your party."

"Tch… we're leaving!" Calling her knights and the Spear Hero, they left without looking back. Turning back to the group that were wearing cloaks, they disappeared as well. What a mysterious bunch they are…

"Mr. Jaune, do I have to continue… 'touching you'?" This was… starting to get a bit embarrassing now. I don't know how many stares I can take anymore!

"You can stop, Raphtalia, I've already put away the Boarbatusk Shield. I… you weren't weirded out by me, right?" Upon hearing that, I turned my entire body towards him.

"O-of course not! I think you looked cute when you were acting like that! With your animal-like ears and glistened eyes, there was no way I could-" I couldn't speak any longer as Mr. Jaune put his hand over my mouth.

"Okay… you can… stop now, I get it…" With a reddened face, he directed his attention elsewhere again.

"I… I'm sorry, Mr. Jaune! I don't know what came over me!"

"It's… fine. You don't have to worry about it. Your hand was… soft." With that, he started to walk towards a group of villagers who was ready to give him an award.

To be honest with myself…

I kind of want the cute Mr. Jaune to come back...

**(A/N) **

**Well... that was the OOC Jaune. Don't worry, he only acts like that when he's using the Boarbatusk Shield. It's... cringy, right? Well, the reason I made him like that, is because the Boarbatusk Shield had a side effect of turning Jaune into a half-like Grimm. As to the missing emotion... that's another side effect upon using it. I think you all already know what it might be by the way he's acting. Sorry that this chapter was... a bit weird, but hey, can you blame me for trying to be a bit creative? **


	10. This Can't Be!

**(A/N)**

**Just a quick note, this is just an idea I had for Jaune so I might be wrong at some parts, but this is how I built this Jaune. The reason Jaune is acting like this because of the side effects of the Boarbatusk Shield. Yes, it basically turned him into a half-Grimm since he has a red eye now. Now, why is he acting weird to Raphtalia? It's because Grimm doesn't know positive emotions as much as Humans. They are created for the purpose of drawing in negative emotions. Jaune's entire personality is built on positive emotions. Now, combining two different beings into one, it can cause a side-effect to be created. The Grimm doesn't have positive emotions. They will only react to negative emotions as that is what attracts them. However, if there exists a more… self-aware Grimm, then wouldn't be… curious? Curious as to what compassion, love, and even happiness is. And that's what Jaune is. However, he knows what those positive emotions are and he can already understand them. However, when he uses the Boarbatusk Shield, he loses some parts of that knowledge of positive emotions. The new Jaune is basically Grimm that is self-aware of positive emotions. And that's when the creation of the Boarbatusk Shield comes to play.**

**The Boarbatusk Shield is basically like a counter to negative emotions. Because of those resistances, he will have some control over the negative and positive emotions. I used the fact that Grimm becomes attracted to negative emotions, as material for the new Jaune to use both negative AND positive emotions as his strength. You can tell by how he notices how bright his aura is starting to become. It's like… his aura is the source of where the emotions are being drawn to. However, when he first used the Boarbatusk Shield, he was out of control because of the negative emotions of envy, anger, and sadness. That caused him to turn him into a humanoid Grimm with a mask without any direction to follow besides to destroy anything. Now, since Jaune is able to compose himself, the only thing he'll attain is the ears of a Boarbatusk. It's like two sides of a coin. One side, he loses himself, causing him to turn into a Humanoid Grimm, where on the other, he controls those emotions, causing only ears to pop out. He can ONLY turn into a Humanoid Grimm when he's not using the Boarbatusk Shield and he let himself be controlled by negative emotions. The shield is a counter and control of those emotions, if he doesn't use it, then he's exposed. This will prove to be a challenge to him because… the world basically built on hate. There are so many people that are built on hate, causing him to have some struggles.**

**Now, how does Raphtalia come to play? We ALL know what Raphtalia's personality is like. Protective, compassionate, and etc. She is basically positive emotions itself. Now, remember when I said that Grimm doesn't understand positive emotions as much as Humans? Yeah, this causes an attraction to be created. Basically, Jaune is being attracted to Raphtalia and he doesn't even know it because of the Boarbatusk Shield. It's drawing in a LOT of positive emotions from Raphtalia that's directed towards him, causing him to start to act like this. Shy, confused, or even scared. His human part of himself understands this, but his Grimm part doesn't. There are already positive emotions inside Jaune, but instead of within himself, the Grimm part of himself wants to draw in more of that positive emotion, regardless if it doesn't understand it or not. Its curiosity basically turned Jaune into a shy person when he's around someone with A LOT of positive emotions. It's like Jaune had just been reborn as a child.**

**Sorry this took too long to explain…**

**And sorry to those who might not like this concept for Jaune...**

"Aha! I knew you'd come back, I just knew-woah, okay, what's going on? You have a… red eye?" Erhard looks at my party with a confused expression. Putting his finger to his chin, he tries to understand what's been going on in my party.

"Hey, Erhard…" I felt a small trickle of sweat come down my head as I watched him continue to look at my party.

"Um, Blondie, I want to start with my first question: did Miss right here grow even taller? She's basically a woman now!" As Raphtalia began to laugh nervously, I could only sweat even more. I don't know why I hadn't noticed it, but Raphtalia DID change in those days where I was asleep. I'm pretty sure that before that time, she was like 16 or 17 years old. Now, she basically looks like she's in her early 20's now! Is she going to stop growing now? I'm not going to see old Raphtalia, right? She can't be growing because of her level, right?

"Thank you for… noticing, Erhard." After saying that, Erhard began to laugh.

"Now, would you look at that! She's all grown up! Now… that leads to my second question, Blondie..." Erhard began to look at the blonde girl who wore a brown cloth over her body and was staring intensely at the sandwich that was on his counter. Oh boy, I guess she's hungry. "Who's this…?" Scratching the back of my head, I started to laugh nervously.

"Master, I'm hungry~!" Staring back at me with a pout, I patted her head. Erhard looked at me with a… hey, why does he looked so freaked out?!

"Blondie… what did you do to this kid? Don't tell me that you're one of _those _people? Here, Kid, you can have this." As Erhard gave the sandwich to the young girl, she happily took it from his hands. I felt like I know what he was talking about, but I chose to forget about it.

"I didn't do anything to her! She called me that when she-"

"Time to eat~!" In a second, smoke surrounded her, and what came from that, was Filo, our Filolial.

"Blondie?! What the hell is going on!" As Erhard took a step back, he watched the giant Filolial eat the sandwich that he gave her in a single gulp. How big was her appetite? How much food are we going to have to give her?!

"This is… Filo, our Filolial." Raphtalia introduced, as she a bit of sweat coming down from her face as well.

"Thank you for the food, Mister!" Filo happily chirped. I think Erhard is too shocked to respond to her.

"Your… Filolial?! She was just a kid a second ago!" Yeah, she was a kid. But before a kid, she was Filolial.

"Um, we don't know why she's like this. I… haven't seen a Filolial that could do this before. I had gotten her a few days ago, but she's been growing exponentially. Just this morning, she's turned into a child. She was… rather clingy to Mr. Jaune here..." Raphtalia shot a bit of a glare at me after explaining to him what happened.

"How was I supposed to know she'll turn into this?! And this morning was a mistake! She wanted to sleep next to me in her Filolial form, I had nothing to do with her transformation!"

"Hmph! Well… I guess it can't be your fault because she's like that. She always did like to sleep on your face after I was done taking her to get something to eat. But still… that's not fair..." Mumbling the last part, Raphtalia crossed her arms and turned another direction. I can feel her disappointment towards me…

"Raphtalia, your disappointment is starting to burn my eye…"

"Huh?! I-I'm sorry, Mr. Jaune! Please forgive me!" Well, as long as she apologizes, then I guess that's fine. My eye isn't burning anymore, so we're fine. However, I have to find something that can handle this… problem I have. I _could _use the Boarbatusk Shield, but because of yesterday, I think I'm too afraid to do so. I need something that could suppress the emotions that are being drawn to me against my will. But… could there anything that exists like that?

"Hey, stop hurting, Master!" Hearing our conversation, Filo was starting to get upset at Raphtalia. Great, because she's a little angry at Raphtalia, now my eye was starting to hurt because of Filo. However, because their emotions are too… strong I guess, it doesn't affect me as much as the anger the princess had...

"What?! Filo, you need to calm down! You're going to-"

"No! You hurt Master!" Even in her giant Filolial form, she's acting like a child. Why does it feel like she's beginning to throw a tantrum? Plus… is she beginning to become a bit _too_ upset? I can feel the wrath emanating from her body...

"I can NEVER forgive anyone who hurts Master!" She starts to walk towards Raphtalia, who didn't want to upset Filo anymore. Great, how am I going to make sure that Filo doesn't get too upset at her? Switching to the Boarbatusk Shield, I felt the pain in my eye begin to go away.

"Filo, I'm fine! See, everything's fine!" I… guess I'm going to have to use the Boarbatusk Shield, after all. Filo is a child, there's no doubt about that. Because she's a child, she can get angered easily. Unless I find something to stop drawing in negative emotions that will make me go… insane, then I'm going to have to keep the shield activated for now.

"Really? You're okay?" Instantly, her anger had dissipated. Well, that's good. As long as she-wait, what's with these...emotions that's surrounding the room? Kind...ness? I guess Erhard has a sense of that. However… there's that weird feeling that I'm getting from Raphtalia again. I… can't describe it…

"Yay! Master's okay!" All of a sudden, I was surrounded by feathers. I can't tell if Filo's hugging me because of how huge she is. Jumping up and down, I can feel the softness of her feathers. Her feathers were… too warm! Not only that, but because I'm this close to her, the amount of positive emotion she has is starting to me feel… ha… happy! The positive emotions that I'm getting from her are really starting to change me so suddenly.

"Hey, Blondie are you alright? You seem… a bit more different. She ain't making you uncomfortable, is she?" Erhard had a confused look on his face as he noticed that I was sinking a bit into her feathers.

"I'm fine! This feels comfortable! I feel like I can sleep an entire day on these!" The more I sank into Filo, the more the positive emotions I draw in from her. It feels so… warm!

"Mr. Jaune, you're about to disappear into her feathers!" Raphtalia yelled out. Nah, I think I'm good. As long as I continue to feel this warmth, then I'm fine!

"F-Filo! Don't act like this when we're in someone's shop!" Trying to stop Filo from jumping around a bit, Raphtalia walked towards us to stop her. As she began to walk closer to me, her emotions were starting to get way TOO strong.

"R-Raphtalia!" My sudden outburst had made Raphtalia stop where she was standing. I'm sure she knows what I'm going through right now.

"B-but…!" I didn't want to be rude, but I just needed Raphtalia away from me right now. Am I… going to have to continue being like this? I… don't want to keep pushing Raphtalia away from me like this anymore. I… might need to know more of this feeling if I want to control myself of this shield. Or was this the drawback of using it? There's nothing wrong with the emotions that I'm feeling from others, it's just that… why are Raphtalia's emotions so strong? And… for what reason?

Deactivating the shield, I was back to normal. I… think I should talk to Raphtalia about it at a later time. If I can control those emotions that I'm drawing from Raphtalia, then… what? What will that do for me? Well… I'm not going to know unless I try, right? "Sorry, Raphtalia, I'm fine. Filo, I know that you care about me, but can you… tone it down with your anger? Negative emotions start to harm me if I keep drawing in negative emotions from you."

"Negative… emotions? I don't get it but okay, Master! Filo will be good!" Oh yeah, I forgot that she's a child. I'm sure she'll understand in the long-run of things.

"...You kids are a hassle, y'all know that? As for the Filolial… I remember hearing about a myth that there are queen Filolials or something like that. I don't know what they do, but if your Filolial can change into a human appearance at will, then I guess she can be considered as one of those queens." A… Filolial Queen? That's… sound too weird to be true. Filo must be a rare kind of Filolial. Sighing, I walked back to the counter to ask him for something that I wanted to know.

"Erhard, do you know any sort of clothing that can stay on Filo after she transforms? She keeps ripping up her clothes when she transforms…" The brown cloth that she was wearing before was already into pieces.

"No, I don't have anything like that. You might need to speak to a dressmaker for that kind of clothing. Here, I'll give you this that someone left behind. Don't ask me where I got it from, just take it." He handed me a pink dress that was probably suited for her size. I _should _ask him who would just leave it here, but I decided not to.

"Sir, what's your progress on Crocea Mors?" Bringing Crocea Mors back up, Raphtalia asked him about the condition of the sword. To be honest, I literally forgot all about that sword.

"Well, Miss, it's all set to go! Don't ask me how because it's a bit of a long explanation, but I managed to turn your sword into a high-quality magic sword!" While Crocea Mors was in its sheath, I could see that it remained the same as it was before. As Raphtalia unsheathed it, it was… the same. As if he didn't touch the sword at all, it was the usual Crocea Mors.

"Um, what about it is magical?" I didn't really understand what was supposed to make it a magic sword.

"Blondie, take a closer look." Hearing him out, I got closer to the sword and I could see some blue lines emanating from the sword. It was hard to see from afar, but nonetheless, I could see it. Was this what made it into a magic sword?

"All right, hurry along now! I'm sure the three of you are busy, right? Make sure you don't break that because I put A LOT of work into that thing, ya hear?"

"Thank you, Erhard… seriously."

"You don't have to be sorry, just one day, remember to pay me back, okay?" I feel like we're going to have to be in debt to him for a while now…

* * *

"Now, aren't you the cutest little girl!" After Filo came out of the dressing room, we could see that the pink dress had managed to fit her perfectly. Seriously, I'm going to have to ask him where or who he got that from. It's a perfect fit!

"Cu...te? I'm cute?" Not understanding the word, she questioned it. The dressmaker nodded quickly deciding to open her mouth again.

"Of course! You are VERY cute and adorable!" The dressmaker's cheeks started to redden the more she looked at Filo in the pink dress. Wait, I've just noticed it, but does Filo have wings on her back? Is that… normal around here? How weird will it be if people noticed that a little girl had wings on her back? Hopefully, I hope they think that it's just a cosplay. Do they do cosplay around here?

"Master… am I cute? Am I adorable?" Turning to me, she tilted her head as she wanted to know how I felt.

"Yeah, Filo, you're very cute." Smiling while patting her head, she smiled back. Such a bright smile she has. I wonder if she's going to continue being like this if-wait, I'm starting to feel negative emotions again…

Jealousy…

But… from where?

"_Cute...?" _This was… Raphtalia's voice? Turning to her, I could see a disappointed look on her face as she looks at Filo. Why would Raphtalia be jealous? She's a kid, so it wouldn't be wrong to treat her with kindness…

"Of course, those are the words that the daughter wants to hear from her father!" Father?! I mean… Filo has the blonde hair and blue eyes like me, but that doesn't I'm the father!

"Father?!" And just like that, Raphtalia's jealousy spiked. Oh boy, my eye is starting to burn again. I guess I'm going to have to figure out what's wrong with her if I want to stop my eye from burning.

"Of course! Don't you see the similarities between the two of them? Blonde hair, I don't know about his red eye, but the other one is blue! That HAS to mean that you're her father! Now, who did you meet to 'share' your time with?" Hearing that, I felt my cheeks begin to feel hot. Now, what is she going on about? I'm sure that there's no one out there who would like me. I'm just… not what I'm expected to be when it comes to girls, that's all…! I had my attempts with girls! They just… didn't see my charm! Who am I kidding, what charm do I have?!

"She's a Filolial! I haven't… been with anyone! Some girls… don't really like guys like me. I mean, with my reputation, I'm pretty sure that not a single girl will like to be with me. I just thought that I wasn't good enough for the one's I was after, that's all!" I wasn't sad, I was only stating the truth.

"..." Randomly, Raphtalia's jealousy had been replaced with… sadness?

"_Oh, is that so…?" _"Raphtalia, are you okay?" Instantly turning to her, I wanted to know if she was okay. She was starting to feel these negative emotions out of nowhere and I wanted to know what's wrong with her.

"Huh? Y-yes, I'm fine, Mr. Jaune!" Curving her lips into a smile, she tries her best to show that she was all right. Why does it seem… forced?

"Are you sure? I mean, I was drawing in some negative emotions from you and I-"

"Nevermind, me, what about Filo?! Excuse me, Miss, we're trying to get clothes that can withstand her Filolial transformation when she goes back to normal! Do you know anything?!" Why… the sudden outburst? And plus, why did she cut me off? Is she trying to hide something from me?

"Oh, is that what you need? You're going to have to give me magic thread if you want me to make that type of clothing! Did you bring some?!" Magic… thread? I haven't that one before.

"Magic thread?" Raphtalia asked, not knowing what that was either.

"Magic thread! Transforming clothes are made from magic thread that is made out of the wearer's own mana! If you go find me some magic thread, then I'll be sure to make the cutest outfit just for her!" Made from their own mana, huh? Since it's about magic, then I'm sure there's only one person who might know where we can find some. And that is that magic shop lady.

"Good luck, you three! Oh, and Shield Hero?" Before walking out of the shop, we turned back to look at her.

"Yes? Is there something you need?" What seems to be fixing her glasses, she looked at me with a smile.

"Don't think that you won't meet the perfect lady for you. Eventually, I'm sure you'll end up meeting the love of your life! It might be someone who's _very _close to you already. You just need to open your eyes a little! Buh-bye!" What she did mean by that? And why did she have to put some emphasis on 'very'? Oh well, it probably must be some weird-

"What's… love?" After leaving the dressmaker's shop, I heard Filo's confused voice. It looked like she didn't understand the word 'love'. I can't blame her because she's basically a child.

"Well, Filo, love is… Raphtalia can you-wait, Raphtalia, is there something wrong?" Raphtalia had her back towards me, so it didn't look like she was paying attention to what Filo had asked.

"Mr. Jaune… did you really mean what you said back there? That you think that not a single girl will come to love you because… you "weren't good enough"? Do you… think that you'll never find love?" Turning back to me, I could feel… a positive emotion from her. However, it was an emotion that I didn't Raphtalia would have towards me. I'm sure she's just feeling the emotion because Filo's here with us…

"I… will find love, trust me! I… just don't know if I'll ever find a girl who'll love me. I haven't had the chance to speak to any other girl because I wanted to… take care of you." Raphtalia's face reddened a bit, but I don't know if it's because of anger…

"If that's true, then… was I getting in your way?! Was it because of how I was that you didn't have the chance to speak to any other girls besides me?!" She was starting to get upset now, and it's starting to burn my eye.

"Huh?! No, that's not what I mean! Raphtalia, look, I know that you're upset, but you have to-"

"Then change into that shield. Change your shield into the giant one that made you used before..." Raphtalia's random order shocked me.

"Chane… into the Boarbatusk Shield?! What for?!" I was confused; why did she want me to change the shield into that one specifically? Was it because…

"Because… because… nevermind, Mr. Jaune. I'm… sorry for my outburst. We should probably continue head to our next destination, right?" With that, she started walking. The positive emotion that she was feeling before had soon turned into sadness.

"_Why…?" _She thought more after that, but I couldn't hear anything else but that. Raphtalia… what's going on with you?

"Master… was that love?" Looking down to Filo, I could answer one thing: "I don't know, Filo. I don't know…" With that, we started to follow behind Raphtalia. Perhaps I should give her some space for now. I should… talk to her after she's feeling better. That… positive emotion from her before shouldn't be, right? I'm sure she's feeling it because of Filo, right…?

Affection…

* * *

"So, you require magic thread, huh? They can be weaved here, but unfortunately, my magic gemstone broke. I'm going to have to contact some helpers of mine to procure a new one for me. It might take a few days, though…" The lady sighed after finishing her explanation.

"If it's expensive, then the thought of buying a new one is out of the question." We weren't rich as the other Heroes, but we at least have some silver coins left to spare. We just have to be careful not to use all of it.

"Um, Sir Shield Hero, is your partner okay?" Looking at Raphtalia, she could see that Raphtalia had something on her mind as she stared out the window while sitting down on a chair. That 'something' was something I already knew…

"Y-yeah, she's okay; I was going to go talk to her later on in the day…" Not wanting to continue the conversation, I didn't say anything other than that.

"What does this thing do?!" Filo, who was staring at the crystal ball with curiosity. Oh yeah, now would be the perfect time to know what her magic affinity was.

"It measures your magical affinity, Dear, would you like to know yours?" After asking that, Filo immediately replied but jumping up and down joyously. I smiled and patted her head as she was excited to know what her magic affinity was.

Jealousy… I was starting to feel that negative emotion again…

Turning to Raphtalia, I saw that she turned her head back to the window the moment I turned to her. Maybe I should… speak to her when she's ready to talk to me. She looked confused when she was about to explain what her problem was, but she only chose to walk away. I should… just wait then.

All I had to do was… wait.

* * *

"Mother, please take this medicine. Sorry, it took such a long time for me to return." The man next to me was holding onto medicine as he was about to give it to her. Stopping him, I put my hand on his chest.

"Wait, allow me to give it to her. You can go boil some water for her." The man looked at me with a confused expression.

"Are you sure?" I nodded my head, which made him decide on leaving us.

With Enhance Potion, I began to give her the medicine. Before this, because we didn't have anything to do while we wait for the lady to be done with the gem, we had FINALLY decided to start making some money. We had silver coins left to spare, but there's nothing wrong with getting some more money. The king won't pay us more than that amount for our monthly payment, so I guess we have to make our own money. Besides, I don't think the king wants to see me after what I did to Motoyasu. After saving Lute Village, the lord of the village wanted to express his gratitude by asking us for a reward. Taking money from them while they were busy with reconstruction wasn't the best of ideas. Fortunately, Filo wanted a carriage that she can pull. Other than that, they had given us some food for our travels, isn't that sweet of them? But not only that, they gave us a Trade Pass for when we want to travel to any other villages. That was going to be helpful if we wanted to trade some food for money.

Sadly, on the way to find a village to trade some food, I haven't spoken to Raphtalia. She… seemed quieter than usual, so I guess whatever is bothering her, is truly starting to change her. Should I still wait to speak to her? Besides Raphtalia, we encountered a villager trying to give his mother some medicine so I thought it was a good idea if I gave him a lift. However, there wasn't enough room for Raphtalia, so we had to leave her behind with the carriage. I'm… worried about her. She was quiet like this when I first met her, so OF COURSE, I'm worried. She's… capable of protecting the carriage, right? No, I shouldn't doubt her. She's more than enough to stop some bandits…

But it doesn't help the fact that I was beginning to become worried about her…

"Thank you, I don't know how I can repay you…" Noticing that the medicine had worked more efficiently because of Enhance Potion, I was glad that she's able to sit up now. She looked so weak before…

"The… the medicine helping already?! I… I can't believe this!" With an amazed expression, he looks at his mother who looked to be better.

"Yes, the pain had already left after he gave me the medicine; thank you so much…" I smiled and nodded my head as I began to walk out the door to meet up with Filo. We're going to have to get back to Raphtalia, now. It appears that the sun is about to set, so we should hurry and find a place to stay, as well.

"Wait, Shield Hero!" Hopping on top of Filo, I heard the man that I had helped earlier with a bag of food.

"It's not money… but I'm sure that this amount will work up to be at least one silver." After handing me the bag, I put the handles of it on my shoulder.

"Thanks, I'll see you later! All right Filo, let's go!" With that, we took off from the small village. I didn't think about this before, but why haven't I tried selling potions?! If could create my own healing and support potions, then I should just sell them! Other than that, I think I just found a new way of helping people! I can create potions that will help out the weak! Of course, I'll be doing that as free of charge, but selling food and potions is the best way of earning some money. There might be some sick people in this kingdom, so… I guess I'm going to have to stay for a bit. I don't know how long it'll take for the gemstone to be created again, but I guess I could use this time as an opportunity to understand the grimoire. With me, Raphtalia, and Filo, we can learn different types of magic!

Raphtalia's problem will come back when she's ready to talk to me… I'll just be patient and not push.

* * *

And so, a couple of days had passed since I helped that man with his mother's sickness. During those days, I visited other villages that weren't too far from Melromarc's town. Anyone that I heard was sick, I created medicine for them. Some people were grateful enough to give me a gold coin or two. I didn't help them for the money, but they insisted on giving it to me. Knowing about the Shield Hero's problematic situation, they did it to help us on our travels on helping others. They said something about the Shield Hero not being as he seemed from what the king had said, and they were very grateful for helping out the sick.

Not only that, we did sell some of the food that we had that overstocked our carriage. Also, Me, Raphtalia, and Filo had been able to understand all different kinds of magic spells that were in the Grimoire. It took some time, but we were able to gain at least some spells that would be useful for our magic affinities. My support and healing magic, Raphtalia's light and dark magic, and Filo's wind magic. I'd say that it was quite fun to learn about the grimoire.

After that day… Raphtalia had gone back to acting as she normally did. The only thing she said was that she was sorry for happened after visiting the dressmaker's shop. I reassured her that I wasn't bothered by it that much, which was almost a lie, but she insisted on apologizing constantly. But no matter, we were able to get back on good terms. However, it wasn't as strong as the first time, but I could still feel her jealousy whenever I'm speaking to Filo, or when she decides on jumping on my back to read some of the pages of the grimoire. When they got too close, I could feel small pints of determination emanating from both of them when they stared at each other. As long as it didn't burn my eye, then I'm fine. Raphtalia will eventually talk to me about her problem, and everything would be fine.

As of right now, as much as I didn't like going back, we went back to find the old man who gave me his potion book. If he's basically a shop owner for medicine, I can sell or trade some potions to him to get some more money. The problem was to find the old man's shop. Looking for it in the night would seem like the best approach so we won't have any problems with anyone here...

"Why, it's so nice to meet the Shield Hero…" Hearing a… creepy man's voice behind us, we turned around to find a short creepy-looking man with small glasses looking at us. Plus, he looked to be wearing… a circus owner costume? What, does he run a circus or something?

"Is there… something you need?" I was suspicious of this guy. To us, it only looked like he just popped up from out of nowhere. I wonder if Raphtalia or Filo noticed him following us if he was doing so…

"You're… that man from before! The one who gave me Filo!" Instantly recognizing the man, Raphtalia pointed at him with an amazed expression. THIS was the man who gave her Filo? I remember her saying that he looked creepy, but I didn't think he looked THIS creepy. Should I be grateful, or should I just ignore him?

"Well, if it isn't the Demi-Human partner of the Shield Hero! How has your Filolial been doing? Judging by how… big it is, I guess I can say that it has grown up to be a _lovely_ Filolial." Okay, we did put the emphasis on 'lovely'? He's not into… weird stuff like that, right?

"Thank you, for giving us Filo. While she does act like a child at some times, she's been growing… way differently than I thought a normal Filolial was supposed to. Is there something that you need from us?"

"I DO NOT act like a child, Raphtalia! If anything, You act like a child!" Filo had to keep using her Filolial form so we didn't have to worry about finding some more clothes for her to fit. However, after saying that, she transformed into her Human appearance. Great. Now, imagine her size in her Filolial form when she had to sleep inside of an inn in other villages? Well, it wasn't good.

Because Filo WAS a child, she starts to act spoiled. First, she keeps demanding us to find food and if we didn't, then she was going start getting upset at us, which we had to start killing some monsters so I could cook them. Experience in my household really proves useful at times like this, huh? Second, she always demanded that I slept in the same room as her. Not finding a way out of her… spoiledness, I had no choice but to do it. Raphtalia didn't seem so keen about it, but I reassured her that it's just Filo. She wouldn't hurt me. However, she did take all of the space on the bed...

"Filo, you can't speak when we're talking to… strangers!" She mumbled the last part, but I don't know if the creepy guy heard her or not. And then, that will begin their argument. However, because we were in the presence of a… creepy guy, they didn't argue other than that.

"She… can speak and transform?! This is certainly what I did not expect from a Filolial! Now, you're probably wondering why she has this appearance, correct?" He knew why Filo looked like this? How much information does he know about the Filolials? "Now, Filolials always have a king or queen leading a flock. This Filolial here is considered to be a queen, Shield Hero! Highly skilled when it comes to transformation, she is able to blend in as any normal Filolial at this point!" So, it wasn't a myth, then? Erhard knew about it, and this creepy guy has some knowledge about them. So… it was true?

"How do you know about the-" As I was about to ask him how he knew of the Filolials, he walked up to me with a weird-looking grin that was making me feel uncomfortable. All of a sudden, there was a negative emotion that was starting to leak out from him: greed. He's… a merchant so… that shouldn't be weird, right? I can't read his thoughts either… why is that?

"However… your Filolial needs to be… tamed." 'Tamed'? Judging by his weird grin, I could tell that he knows EXACTLY how tame, Filo. Wouldn't that be the same as being like a slave to me? That just… feels wrong.

"Sorry… but I don't feel comfortable treating Filo as some kind of… slave." As I turned to leave, the man decided on jumping in my way.

"Shield Hero, as much as you might not like it, however, there are some… laws that must be followed in Melromarc. You're Filolial is considered as a monster, and as a monster, they must be tamed so they wouldn't cause havoc. I'm certain you noticed other Filolials in the town behaving like calm monsters, correct? That is because of the 'special crest' that the Filolials wear to be put into a state of mind where they won't attack anyone. As they are monsters, they MUST be tamed..." I crossed my hands as I was a bit disappointed.

"Laws… I'm guessing you mean like slaves, correct? Well, I'm sure Filo won't… attack anyone for no reason. I'm keeping an eye on her so she won't-"

"You seem to have a lot of trust in your Filolial, Shield Hero. However, what do you think will happen if your Filolial had been captured by another party? What do you think will happen, Shield Hero?" As if he was trying to taunt me, his glasses glistened. What's… this guy's problem?

"...They would-wait, don't tell me that you're saying that they can enslave, Filo! That… that won't happen! I'm sure I can-" Raphtalia and Filo's expression had hardened instantly because of this shocking revelation.

"What if you are… if I should say 'out of commission for a few days', and you couldn't help them? Your Demi-Human partner of yours could've have some trouble with some… interesting characters out here, if it wasn't for the Bow and Sword Hero's escort. She had to go out by herself just she could help you with everything you need because you were out for a few days. Did you know that slavery is legal in this kingdom, Shield Hero? And some who were enslaved were… Demi-Humans. Because she has grown up to be a very fine woman, I'm sure that they're are some… interesting fellows out here who's been keeping an eye out for her. You should consider putting on a crest for your Demi-Human companion as well, for safety precautions. However, you should-"

"Don't. Say. Anything. More…" I was starting to get a bit upset now. One, because of the fact that I just learned that slavery was legal in this kingdom. SLAVERY being legal?! What kind of king is fine with this shit?! And second… this man was basically telling me to enslave BOTH Raphtalia and Filo, right now. The nerve of this man! I should-no, Jaune, your anger is starting to cause your eye to burn. You… have to keep yourself calm and collected…

"Mr. Jaune wouldn't allow any of that! And besides, I'm sure Filo and I are capable of enough of defending ourselves! A couple of bandits won't be any trouble to us!" It's good to know that Raphtalia trusts me enough that I wouldn't allow them to be captured…

"I trust, Master to protect us! I'll protect Master as much as he would to us!" Filo...

"I'm sorry if this is insulting all of you, but I must say this because it is a warning for you, Shield Hero. Consider this: if you were to be injured badly enough to not be able to fight back? Regular bandits might not be a problem for you all, but some bandits might have Class-Ups that might be a problem to you in the future. If you and your party are caught off-guard, then you might lose your Demi-Human and Filolial forever, Shield Hero. And if you want to travel... there are some places who won't take a liking if they notice that your partners are not shown to be within your control. A lack of trust towards the Demi-Humans is the cause of slavery, Shield Hero..."

I don't know what Class-Ups are, but I chose to think too much of the thought of seeing Raphtalia and Filo being taken away from me… the thought of them being in the hands of some worthless idiots from this kingdom… the thought of them being… 'touched' upon started to make me feel…

Angry.

Quickly turning my shield into the Boarbatusk Shield, I had to get some control over myself. While those experiences seem… realistic, can that really happen to them? What if… I'm not able to protect them with the abilities I have now?

Was this… something that I should risk…?

For the safety of Raphtalia and Filo, should I risk it…?

I… don't either of them to be taken away from me! They're… **mine** and no one else's!

Wait, did I… just say that they were mine? What's… going on with me? I… shouldn't say things like that! They… aren't like some property of mine!

"Mr. Jaune, are you all right?" Raphtalia looked concerned because I didn't respond to the 'merchant' because I was too busy with my thoughts. As she started to walk closer to me, I was starting to feel her emotions again. What… were they again? I'm sure I knew what the emotion was, but… I forgot all about it. What was it again? Strong. Addictive. Closeness. **Mine. **What's… going on?

"R-Raphtalia! I-I didn't say anything like that you were mine or anything like that! I was just… thinking to myself, that's all!" Did I… just say to her? Are you… kidding me?! Now she's going to think that I'm weird! She probably won't have those sweet and addictive positive emotions anymore! Way to go, Jaune! No, why am I saying that it was sweet and addictive?! Why am I-

"..." Not saying anything, Raphtalia's face reddens as much as Ruby's cape. After that, Raphtalia started to walk towards me. Why was she doing that?! She's… making me want to pet her head and reassure her that everything is all right! Stop doing that, Raphtalia! Why are you making me feel like this?!

"R-Raphtalia, w-wait! Don't-" All of a sudden, I felt her hand on my head. Then, she started to rub my head as if I was some sort of pet!

"There, there, . I'm completely harmless, see?" As she began to keep rubbing my head, I began to feel my face begin to get hotter.

"I'm not a child, Raphtalia! Stop it!" The more she began to rub my head, the more I was starting to feel weak to her touch. Oh! She's starting to rub my ears! I… I'm not a child! Why is she doing this?!

"Then… do you want me to stop?" Raphtalia smiled as she began to scratch the back of my ears. Why… does it feel so good?!

"I… didn't tell you to stop!" Almost if she was teasing me, I responded immediately. To that, she giggled.

"Don't laugh! You're making me feel even more weird!" All of a sudden, Filo embraced me from behind. She had quickly turned back into her Filolial form, as I am able to feel her feathers. So… soft! What am I doing?! I feel like… I can melt from the amount of positive emotions they are expressing, right now!

"That's not fair, how come you get to play with Master like this, Raphtalia?!"

"I'm… not playing with him! I'm just… curious to know how he would react, that's all!" Raphtalia quickly defended herself from the accusation. I couldn't read her thoughts because I was busy being surrounded by fluff, but oh well, I guess it doesn't mean anything. As long as I can continue to feel them, then I can melt all I want! From here on out, I will call this Positive Fluffiness! I like the name already!

"Shield… Hero? I did not expect you to become… like this…" Remembering that the creepy guy was here, I turned to him.

"And? What about it? You're interrupting my time with Positive Fluffiness… beat it." Looking at him with a blunt expression, I basically told him to scram. If he gets in the way of my Positive Fluffiness, then I'll just-

Now, are you sure that you wouldn't like to have the 'special crest' on the two? You might feel like you can protect them forever, but you can't do that forever. Shield Hero, I will like to… strike you with a deal: for two weeks, I'll put the crest on your partners. After those two weeks, I want you to come back to me and tell me if it's suitable for your needs. Is that all right?" Hearing the potential that he could remove the crest, I started to feel a bit more relieved, at the very least.

"Hmm, your offer seems tempting… fine, but after those two weeks, I want you to take it off, and never speak with them again, do you hear me?!" Being a bit shaken up with how rude I'm starting to sound, the 'merchant' began to sweat a little. Hmph! Serves him right for giving me those thoughts of Raphtalia and Filo being taken away from me!

"W-why, of course! Now, follow me, not only that, but I have another guest that wants to speak with you. He's… someone that is grateful for protecting our 'merchandise'. Come, let's go speak to him. He proves to hold some _very _useful information as well…"

"...What kind of 'merchandise'?" I feel like I already know the answer to that question…

"Now, aren't you curious? I can tell you if you are interested with my business…"

"Old guy… you're creepy. No thanks."

"I get that a lot from my customers… and I'm not that old." With that, we began to follow the creepy guy to whatever shop he had…

* * *

Raphtalia

"I'm sowwwwy, Raphtalia and Filo! I don't know what came over me! I didn't mean to hurt you!" As Mr. Jaune dug his head into my… chest, I started to rub his head to reassure him that I was all right. He was using the Boarbatusk Shield again, so I couldn't resist his cuteness, right now. It was too adorable to ignore. Even the way he said 'sorry' was cute...

"It's fine, Mr. Jaune. You decided to do this because you were worried about us, right? It didn't hurt THAT much. I'm more concerned about Filo…" Out of the two of us, Filo had been the one who was the most resistant. It didn't look like she wanted to have it, but I guess she's okay…"

"Meanies! It really hurt!" Filo was sitting on the dusty floor with a disappointed look at us. Well, I guess it hurt Filo more because she kept resisting the crest. A normal crest didn't work, so the 'merchant' had use a more… 'special crest' for her. Shortly after that, it was revealed that the 'merchant' was actually a slave merchant. He sells slaves for money against their will; something I didn't like...

"But… I made you two into my slaves! I shouldn't be allowed to live! I failed as a Human because of this! Now, I'm just like everyone else in this stupid kingdom!" I couldn't tell if Mr. Jaune was crying, but I didn't want him to do so if he wasn't.

"Mr. Jaune, the moment you said that you would want to put these crests onto us, I knew you were doing this to protect us. Even if you didn't want to do it, you didn't want to take the risk of losing us. I'm grateful, Mr. Jaune! Even if I know you to take a lot of risks, you didn't want to depend on the risk of being taken away from you. I… trust you more than you know, Mr. Jaune…" Being taken away from Mr. Jaune? No, that's something that I would never want. Imagining myself to be under someone else's control made me upset. I can't believe that this kingdom has slavery allowed! And especially… when it's slavery of other Demi-Humans! So many Demi-Humans are suffering because of this corrupted land. If only… slavery didn't exist.

I… don't want to imagine some of the Demi-Humans from my home to be enslaved to some… disgusting Humans. Memories of Rifana-chan and Keel-kun starts to flow within my head. The thoughts of them being… enslaved-

"Thank you Raphtalia for… forgiving me. I promise that I won't force you into doing something that you don't want! But… the shield has an ability where the slave can become stronger because I absorbed the ink for the crest. But… that doesn't matter! There's no reason to get stronger if I make you uncomfortable! Are you… all right? I'm feeling some negative emotions coming from you…" Looking up at me with his azure and crimson eye, he looked concerned.

"Yes, I'm fine, Mr. Jaune. I just… have some bad memories, that's all. It will happen from time to time, don't worry." As I rubbed the back of his new animal ears, he made a face that showed that he was satisfied with the way I was rubbing them. It was like… his mouth had turned into an upside-down three?

Last night, after following the creepy guy to his… strange shop, there was this man who looked to be a traveling merchant who wanted to express his gratitude by giving us all of the information that he knows that will be helpful to Mr. Jaune. He said that he was a traveling accessory trader and he had some of his materials in Lute Village during the second Wave. Basically, we were able to save some of it even though he wasn't there. I'm grateful, but… something seems off about this. Did we really manage to save some of his supplies in Lute Village? Most of the buildings were already on fire and we didn't have enough time to search the houses if there were any survivors in there.

It just… seems convenient, that's all…

Other than that, the accessory trader taught Mr. Jaune how to create gems and gemstones. I'd say that it was very useful since he was happy that he was able to learn some spells because of that. Not only that, but he gave Mr. Jaune an envelope as to where he can find someone who knows a thing or two about gemstones. Without that Boarbatusk Shield, he doesn't express himself like this. It's like he's just a child. The accessory trader didn't have much time left, so he had to leave because he was late for a meeting with someone. After that, we left the shop to turn in at Lute Village.

Today, after returning from the location of the person who knows about gemstones, we picked up the lady who owned the magic shop and started to head towards the location of where he knows about the magic thread that we need for Filo, which was a temple. Arriving there, we were preparing ourselves to enter the old temple.

Mr. Jaune is still using his Boarbatusk Shield… is he okay? Maybe I should… talk to him about… that day with the dressmaker. No! I'm not ready yet, so I should probably tell him when the time is right…

Mr. Jaune…

* * *

Jaune

"Mr. Jaune, are you okay with that shield on? N-not that I'm complaining or anything, but I was just… you know, wondering..." As I held the torch as we entered the cave, I heard Raphtalia ask me about the Boarbatusk Shield, which I turned to her and smiled. We were… close so that I can feel the positive emotions coming from her. Other than the torch, it was starting to make me feel warm...

"Huh? Oh, don't worry, Raphtalia! I'm A-okay! Well, I've been using a shield for a long time today, so I guess I should turn it back to the Legendary Shield." After taking the Boarbatusk Shield away, I felt normal again. The affections that I felt from Raphtalia weren't as strong now, so I should feel fine, I guess. But still… affections?

"I'm… sorry I did those things, Raphtalia. I become a bit weird when I use that shield, you know...:"

"Aren't you two youngsters getting more closer than usual? If I didn't know you two, I would think that the both of you were in a relationship!" After saying that, I felt my cheeks begin to become hotter. The old lady began to laugh as I continued to hold the torch to guide our way towards the gemstone.

"..." I didn't say anything as I stole a glance at Raphtalia, who didn't say anything either as she stole a glance as well. When our eyes met, we immediately turned to look at something else. Well, since it was dark, we couldn't see anything that well. When she said that she thought we were in a relationship, I couldn't help but feel… happy. Should I feel happy? I'm sure Raphtalia doesn't feel happy like me, right?

But… those affections…

As we began to go further in the temple, I noticed that we hadn't met a single monster, which was strange. "That's strange, we hadn't encountered a single enemy, yet. What gives?" I was initially concerned if the monsters were hiding and waiting to ambush us, but that can't be the case. I'm sure that I'll be able to feel their negative or positive emotions by now…

"...Mr. Jaune, I can smell blood around us." Stopping for a second, I turned back to ask what she meant by that, but upon stopping, my foot was on top of something squishy. Looking down… I can see that my foot was on some sort of bat!

"It's… been torn apart! What kind of monster would just attack other monsters randomly?" A surprised Filo found this situation odd like us. Not only this single bat, but there were multiple of these bats on the floor. Some of them were missing their wings, and some of them had a claw mark. That's… odd. Was there a monster who was hungry? But if that is true, then why aren't these bats eaten?

"Look, Sir Shield Hero, a monster footprint!" As she pointed to a medium-sized monster footprint, it looked like it belonged to a wolf of some kind. It's almost as if it was a-

But that's when I felt something…

Anger...

"...Guys, _something _is here with us… and it's straight ahead of us…" Looking a bit further ahead of us, I could see a blue room ahead of us. Whatever this _something _was, it went ahead of us to look for something. "Guys, keep your guard's up…"After nodding, we walked towards the room. I'm more afraid of what sort of monster we were going to have to face.

"What the…" Upon reaching the room, we could see crystals all over the room and… a dead lion-like creature on the floor. The gemstone that we needed was all the way at the back of the room. Was he supposed to guard the gemstone? If so, then why is it dead?

"Mr. Jaune… doesn't this seem odd?" Raphtalia had speculations as well.

"That's… strange, why is this creature dead on the floor? Judging by how fresh the blood looks, it looked like it died recently…" The lady seemed to found it odd as well, but chose to not walk forward. Whatever killed this creature might still be in here…

"Master, I'll go get it for you!" Without hesitating, Filo, who was in her Filolial form, started to approach the gemstone that we needed.

***HRRRRRR*** "Filo, wait!" Hearing a growl nearby, I rushed into the room trying to stop Filo before-

"Huh?" As she turned back to look at me, a single creature… a single black creature had jumped towards Filo with its claws ready to strike down Filo.

"Filo, watch out!" As Filo was about to get attacked by the black creature, it just… disappeared! It just disintegrated in front of us!

"Filo?! Are you okay?!" As Raphtalia ran towards Filo to see if Filo was okay, Filo cocked her head to the side with a confused expression; as if she didn't know what was about to attack her. However…

"What's wrong, Raphtalia? Did something happen?" Filo asked with no hints of worry in her voice.

"No… it's just that you were almost attacked by a monster!" As Raphtalia began to explain what happened a second ago, I stood next to the lady.

"What was that creature? I haven't seen anything like that before… Shield Hero? Is there something wrong? You're starting to sweat." As I heard the lady's concerned voice, I couldn't find any way of responding to her. I was… too shocked to respond back…

That black appearance…

The claw marks…

And I was able to see it for a second, but… it wore a mask. I… know what that creature was…!

No, it couldn't be! It's not possible! How did... how did...

How did a Beowolf appear in this world…?!


	11. You And I

_Chimera Viper Shield:_

_Abilities:_

_Change Shield_

_Poison Resistance_

_High Detoxify_

_Special Effect: Snake Venom (M) Hook_

I wasn't the one who killed that beast. It was… that Beowolf. By the looks of it, it looked too huge to be a normal Beowolf. If I remember anything about my studies… then that Beowolf that I've just seen was an Alpha Beowolf. More dangerous, and more powerful than the normal Beowolf…

But how did it appear out of nowhere like that? And more importantly… why did it disappear like that? As soon as it disappeared, the rage that I felt from it had disappeared instantly…

It's almost as if… it couldn't stay in this world…

"Mr. Jaune, is everything all right?" Hearing Raphtalia, who was busy holding the reins on Filo, she turned to me with a concerned look.

"Yeah… just thinking to myself…" If that Alpha Beowolf was able to travel from my world to here… then what if there were more? In Remnant, Grimm were considered as the most dangerous beings in the world. However, here, they're all sorts of monsters that are more dangerous than the Grimm. They… shouldn't be strong as we have magic that can easily take them out, but… the problem is the number of them. And… are they already going to villages and killing innocent lives?

More importantly, what if… my friends suddenly pop in this world? No, that can't be, because anyone that is to travel to this world is to be summoned here, just like us. If that's the case… then how did that Alpha Beowolf end up here? It… couldn't have been summoned here, right?

"Mr. Jaune… talk to me, is something bothering you? Is it… that creature that we've met before?" Sigh… I guess I can't hide anything from Raphtalia. We've spent almost two months together, after all…

"Yeah… I'm concerned as to how it was able to come from my world and get here. But not only that… I'm concerned about the village that we're traveling to. The accessory trader told us… that it was over-run by plants so we needed to bring herbicide with us. Do you… think there could be any survivors?"

After attaining the gemstone, we took it back to the lady's magic shop where we can create the magic thread for Filo. Because the clothing that we wanted to give to Filo must be created by magic thread, she had to create the thread herself by using her own mana. Eventually, the dressmaker made the clothing for her, which was adorable. It was a white dress that had blue frilly decorations at the tips of her sleeves and at the bottom of the dress. The final touch was a blue ribbon. Calling her adorable, she only continued to thank me by wrapping her arms around my neck for a hug. After thanking the dressmaker, I noticed that she had bangs under eyes which basically told me she spent hours upon end to create the dress for her. 340 silver coins… it was expensive, but since we had money to spare, we paid it easily...

And of course… Raphtalia's jealousy had grew again…

After that day, we found the accessory trader's shop and decided to thank him for the information. However, I've noticed that he was disappointed about something, so we decided on asking what was wrong. He gave us valuable information, so we could at least hear him out. However… the information that he told us was saddening…

"I know it is worth of your concern to wonder about that creature, but we shouldn't allow that to hinder what is most important: saving others lives. We might encounter that creature again, but if you know so much about it, then we won't have to worry about anything! You can point its weakness and we can strike it down easily! I know… that the accessory trader was saddened about the loss of this village in the South. But we have to make sure that we can stop whatever's going on there so we can save nearby residents!" Other than being concerned as much as I was, Raphtalia took the time to see the somewhat bright side of things.

"Thanks, Raphtalia… I wouldn't know what to do if I didn't have you by my side to get me out of my worry."

"Hey! What about me, Master?!" Filo exclaimed as she started to shake the carriage a little. Okay, I haven't put much thought to it, but why does Filo call me that? Hearing "Master" from her was starting to make me a bit uncomfortable. I basically enslaved her, but I don't want her to call me that anymore. I'll talk to her sometime after this about calling me something else…

"F-Filo! Stop making the carriage s-shake! I don't have the stomach to deal with motion sickness, right now!" Motion sickness? Raphtalia has motion sickness? Now that I think about it, Raphtalia always requested Filo to take it slow when pulling the carriage, so I guess that makes sense.

However… why am I not feeling motion sickness?

_Perfect Balance:_

_Prevention of dizziness and or motion sickness._

As if the Help menu knew about my situation, the screen popped up in front of my face that basically told me I don't have to deal with motion sickness anymore! Okay, I'm starting to love this shield a lot more, now! No longer am I plagued with motion sickness! If I'm on a Bullhead, then I won't-oh wait...

"I-it's nothing! I just didn't want you to feel saddened, that's all!" I can feel her compassion as she speaks; She really worries about me, huh? Well, I'm glad I have her around. She's one of my… wait, what do I see Raphtalia as? A friend? A comrade? A partner? Or maybe…

Feeling my cheeks get hotter I wanted to think of something else. T-there's no way Raphtalia would think of me in THAT sort of way. If anything, she might just see me as her father or something along those lines. It's been a long time since I first met her in Remnant. Now that I think about it… I wonder what my friends are doing now? Are they… doing fine without me there? Who will be the leader of JNPR while I'm… gone? I might be gone… for a very long time…

"Raphtalia?" Feeling some worry build up within me, I wanted to speak to Raphtalia to see if this was worth worrying about…

"Yes, Mr. Jaune?"

"Do you… think my friends will hate me because I'm like this? In Remnant… our enemy is the Grimm. Now that I'm… part Grimm… do you think they'll hate me?" Raphtalia pondered about something for a moment before speaking again…

"I don't think so, Mr. Jaune. If they're your friends, then they shouldn't have any problems with who you are. It's not about what's on the outside that made them want to be your friend, it's because they knew what you are like in the inside, Mr. Jaune. That's what made them want to be your friend. Just like how I… nevermind me!" It was a second, but I started to feel affection from her again. For… what reason, though?

"Thank you, Raphtalia, that makes me happy. I guess I don't have to worry about anything, anymore, then!" As her emotion was that of happiness, she turned and smiled at me.

"It's no problem, Mr. Jaune. As long as you're happy, then I'm happy…" She's… happy because of me? I'm… glad, then!

"Master, there's something ahead of us!" As I hear Filo's concerned voice, I came from behind the carriage to see what the problem was…

What? There's… plants blocking the entrance of the gate!

"Those are… plants?" Raphtalia questioned, as she stopped Filo in front of the plants that were blocking the way into the village. Now, how did that happen? These plants look abnormal so I'm guessing something must be wrong with them…

"Okay, then, let's see if this herbicide works…" Taking a bottle of herbicide, I poured its contents onto the plants which made it retract… possibly from agony.

"It worked, Mr. Jaune! We can enter the village, now!" As Raphtalia was ecstatic to enter the village, I was glad as well. However, I'm concerned as to what may lie inside the village. Plant monsters?

"All right, let's hop back inside the carriage and enter the village. We're going to have to clear the village of this weird plant substance!"

"Okay!" Hopping back on the carriage, we started to ride towards the village… let's hope we're not too late to save anyone survivors…

* * *

"It looks barren…" Hearing Raphtalia say that, I guess we arrived at the village. Coming from out the back of the carriage, looked to see if there were any survivors around, but as Raphtalia just said, it looked barren…

"Master, what should we do?" As Filo stopped not too far away from the village, she asked me of our next step. To be honest, it's kind of hard to think of one. If anything, the first thing to do is to look for any survivors within the houses. However, who knows if there could be any monsters laying around.

"Look, Mr. Jaune! I see some people! Let's go ask them what happened here!" As Raphtalia got off the carriage, she began to walk towards the people that she sees that were in the village. They just… came from behind the house so… I guess they're okay, right?

Wait… why am I not feeling any sorts of emotions from any of them? I could feel some coming from within some of the houses, but why not them? Taking a closer look at them… wait, were those… vines on their bodies?!

"Raphtalia, wait!" Quickly grabbing her hand, she looked back to me with a reddened face.

"Huh? Is there something wrong, Mr. Jaune?"

"They… don't seem to be all right, Raphtalia. Something about them feels… off."

"Are you sure? We came here looking for survivors and here they-wait… what's that on their bodies? Are those… vines?" So she finally noticed it, huh?

"Yeah, we should probably take a safe approach and-" Before I could finish my sentence, I saw a flash of white go past my face.

"What are you two waiting for?! We have to ask if they're okay!" Filo began to start running towards the village in her Filolial form. Crap!

"Wait, Filo, it's dangerous! Wait a second!" As we began to run after her, she was already speaking to the odd-looking villagers.

"Hey, are you guys all right? There are some weird-looking plants outside and-"

"Why? He said that it was going to save us! Why did he lie?!" Without any warning, the villager raised his arms like a zombie and was about to attack Filo. Immediately reacting, Filo kicked the villager away from her, causing him to skid across the hard floor.

"F-Filo?! Why did you attack him?!" Raphtalia was concerned about the knocked downed villager who was on the floor. However, he stood back up and was about to towards us again. Not only him, but a few villagers started to walk towards us, as well…

**"He lied to us!"**

**"He made us into this!"**

**"Liar! The Spear Hero is a liar!"**

They started to repeat that over and over again as they continued to come closer to us. It's… weird. I can hear them loud and clear, but I'm not getting any sense of emotion from them. Are… they dead already? But then… how are they walking and speaking like that?

"Mr. Jaune, what do we do?! We can't… we can't kill them!" Raphtalia had taken out Crocea Mors, but she still had the sheathe on it. She… doesn't want to harm them, too...

"I… I don't know! I can't feel their emotions! Raphtalia… they… they might already be dead!" I punched a man who had gotten close to me, but that only resulted in him getting back up again. Damn… we were too late! They're… they're zombies…

"What?! But how are they-"

"Raphtalia, I'm sorry but… we're going to have to put these villagers out their suffering. You can see it in their eyes, right?" As a zombie-like villager got close to Raphtalia, she smacked him away with Crocea Mors. I've noticed it as they got close to us, but even I can't feel their emotions, I could… see their depressed-looking faces as they are about to attack us. How are they doing this? They shouldn't be able to express themselves like this! Is it… because of the vines?

"But… are they really dead? We… we can't just…!"

"Raphtalia… I know. I don't want to do this either, but if this continues, then they won't stay down. The sooner we stop this, the sooner we can stop this… whatever this is from spreading. Please, Raphtalia…" Sadness started to fuel me and Raphtalia. Because of that, my eyes started to burn a bit. This was… who could've done this?!

No, wait… one of the villagers said that the Spear Hero was part of this…!

Damn him for doing this to the villagers!

"...All right. Let's… put them to rest, now…" As Raphtalia unsheathed Crocea Mors, she prepared herself to cut these people down. She seemed hesitant at first, but she decided to do this, now…

"...Sorry, Raphtalia. Let's just… do this, Raphtalia and Filo…"

"Master…" Filo looked at me with a worried expression, but I decided not to say anything else.

It was… time to put these people to rest.

Then, we're going to go to the bottom of this…

* * *

"So, this is the monster that caused all of this...?" As we found the monster that was the cause of this, we were prepared to strike it down, once and for all. It was a giant plant monster who had a star as a face, but in the middle of it was an eye. It laid in the middle of the village, but the place we were at before was some sort of stronghold. It… wasn't easy coming here, since we had to… put down some other people who were infected by these vines.

"...Be careful, Mr. Jaune." Before coming here, we had visited the houses that I've felt negative emotions when we first went there. Sadly, some of the people there were infected as well, but not as much as the villagers we had to… take down. It turned out that the people who were in there were trying to hide away from the infected villagers there, but some of them were already infected. Using medicine with the Medicine Shield and then the herbicide for the ones who were sick, it managed to work and reverse the effects of the vines. Of course, they were grateful, and they told us the reason how the infection started…

"So, because of Spear Idiot, the villagers here are infected?!" Filo calling him Spear Idiot was good and all, but now was not the time to just stand around idly. We're going to have to take this monster out quick and fast! Because of this monster… it caused the people to act like this! I'm… angry now!

"Raphtalia, take this herbicide and spread on its face!" Since the plants were weak to the herbicide, if we spread the herbicide on the plant, then everything will be gone for good!

"Okay! Filo, let's go!" Hopping onto Filo, they hopped towards the sky as they began to get closer to the giant plant monster.

In the meantime…

"Boarbatusk Shield!" Switching into the Boarbatusk Shield, I set it down onto the floor. If I wanted to get closer to it, then I have to use any means necessary. "Boarbatusk Roll!" As the Boarbatusk Shield begin to spin wildly, it went straight towards the plant monster, cutting down any vines in the way. Great, that's my chance to-

Huh? What's got a hold of me? Looking down, I could see some of the vines begin to wrap itself around my legs. It can regenerate?! 'Return!' Mentally calling the Boarbatusk Shield back to me, it immediately stopped the direction it was going to and went back towards me. Without the Boarbatusk Shield cutting the vines off of me, the shield emitting a green light from the green gem that was on top of the Boarbatuk's mask. Not doing anything, the vines had automatically dispersed off of me. I guess this is the Legendary Shield's power…

"Raphtalia, you're starting to hold me back!" Looking up at the sky to see Filo and Raphtalia cutting down some vines, I could feel that Filo was a bit annoyed.

"'Holding you back'?! What are you talking about?! We're supposed to act as a team!" Somehow, I'm getting some flashbacks of Ruby and Weiss, right now…

"Raphtalia, look out!" As Raphtalia didn't notice the vines that were out to grab her, it quickly wrapped itself around Raphtalia's body. As she dangled upside down, she quickly pulled her skirt down so I-wait, I shouldn't be thinking this! This damn plant monster better not be planning to do something to her! I outta'-

"Pfft!"

"F-Filo! D-Did you just laugh?!" I also heard Filo's stifled laugh, so I looked at her with an odd look. She couldn't have possibly done this to make fun of her, right?

"Of course not! Why would I be doing that?! Nevermind that, just use the herbicide!"

"What do you mean by that?!" As Raphtalia took out the herbicide and opened it up, causing the contents to pour all over the bottom of the plant monster. However, as it did work for a second, it quickly regenerated. Was this because it was Raphtalia who was using it?

"Boarbatusk Roll!" Using Boarbatusk Roll, I sent the shield towards the plant monster again, cutting down the vines again, however, this time, I followed close behind it.

"How about this?!" Quickly taking out a spare herbicide, I poured the contents at the same spot the herbicide Raphtalia used. This time, it worked because it looked to be in some pain. Shortly after, the monster was starting to die out.

"Kya!" As I heard Raphtalia's scream, I looked up to see Raphtalia falling down. I have to catch her!

"Rope Shield!" As I caught Raphtalia in a bridal-style manner, I used the Rope ability to grab onto a nearby pole and pulled us towards it, getting us out of the way of danger. That was close…

"I got you, Raphtalia." As I looked down at Raphtalia, I could see her face a bit red. She didn't get hurt, did she?

"Y-yeah, you caught me…" As Raphtalia and I continued to stare at each other in the eye, I started to feel my cheeks begin to become hotter. NOW, I just realized that I was still holding her.

"S-sorry, my mistake! Let me put you down now…" Putting her down, her bangs started to cover her eyes as I couldn't see if she was hurt or not. I could still see her reddened face, but on her body, she didn't appear to have any scratches on her…

"I-It's fine! T-thank you for saving me… as always. I'll just be… over here, then." As Raphtalia started to walk towards a bunch of fruit laying on the floor close to the monster we had just killed. I guess… I'll just absorb the remains of the plant monster then…

_Bio Plant Shield:_

_Ability: Plant Modification._

"Hey, Filo, that was mine, and you know it!" After reading the information about the Bio Plant Shield, I heard Raphtalia and Filo, who wasn't in her Filolial form, beginning to argue with one another. Plant Modification, huh? I might have an idea as to what I can use this shield for…

"Well, I found it first!"

"No, you didn't! You just took the one I was about to take! Give it back!"

"No! It's mine!" Well, if I should remember anything about what my dad told me about girls, it's that you don't get in the way of their arguments…

...I think I'll follow his words for now…

* * *

A day had passed since then, and we were currently traveling to a village that was a bit close to the mountain landscapes. Ever since starting on making medicine for the sick, I think it's starting to become a habit for me at this point. This morning, because the village from yesterday lost all of their crops and food, I had decided on something that involves the Bio Plant Shield: modify the seeds breeding, mutation, growth, and productivity so they have some food to eat. At least they won't turn into monsters. They were grateful, of course, and they wanted to give something in return, but they were out of things to give us. Filo, being the greedy bird she is, asked for a whole chunk of those fruits because she loved to eat them…

"Do you think some of the fruits they gave us will make it to the accessory trader?"

"I think so, Raphtalia. I told them that it didn't matter how many days it took, when they have the time, they can send some of those fruits to the merchant as a means of selling it to him. Not only them, but we would earn some money out of it, too." Of course, not all of them were able to fit inside the carriage. And so, we told the villagers to at least send some of them to the accessory trader to earn some money for repairing their village.

"We're here~!" Filo exclaimed as she stopped. Looking out the carriage, I could see that we stopped in front of some houses in the village. So much… sadness and mourning are coming from these houses.

"Who's making all of that ruckus?! Wait, is that… the Shield Hero! That our God for sending us hope!" Hearing an old man coming from out of his house, I could feel that he was happy to see us. "Please, Shield Hero, follow me!" As the old man began to start running to a nearby house, Raphtalia and I grabbed two boxes of medicine and followed him inside the building.

"What's going on here?" I was curious as to know why there was… this much sadness around the village. Was there a sickness that was… plaguing the area? Looking around, I could see some people laying in bed with expressions as if they were in some pain.

"You're… the Shield Hero?! We heard the rumors of how you had been able to cure people's sickness in other villages! Please, could you help us out? The plague has been spreading at an exponential rate! We'll be sure to pay you in return." The doctor in charge of these people had entered the room.

"Don't worry about that, right now. Raphtalia, let's begin giving these people some medicine." Nodding her head, she took some medicine that we had brought in and started to give them it. It won't be as effective as how I give them it, but I could use all the help I can get.

Huh? Wait… why isn't the medicine working as efficiently as it did before? They don't seem to be showing signs of the symptoms of this sickness, but they're not exactly cured… why is that? How strong is this plague, anyway?

"It's working!" A woman that I'm guessing is his assistant exclaims with pure joy. After giving all of the sick people the medicine, I turned to the doctor and his assistant.

"...Not exactly. The medicine is helping them treat their symptoms, but… it didn't cure them. Sooner or later, they'll go back to being sick. We'll go back to the capital and ask if they could send any people to come here and cure your people." It was a risk worth trying, but these people's lives are important. If they won't cooperate, then I'll just ask Itsuki or Ren to help with that request. Huh, I wonder what they're doing now?

"Are you leaving? S-Shield Hero, this plague didn't come from out of nowhere! It originated from a place nearby the mountains!" Hearing this, my curiosity peaked.

"You mean this plague came from somewhere? If it's a monster, then where is it near the mountains?" My question had made the two look down to floor with saddened expressions.

"Not too long ago, the Sword Hero visited this village in hopes for material from a dragon nearby here. Together with his and some of our adventurers, he went to the mountains to go slay it. However… some of the adventurers we sent with him… hadn't come back with him. They were… sacrifices to slay the dragon. However, because of the dragon's corpse, it's the cause of the plague..." After explaining everything, the woman went back to being quiet.

"...The Sword Hero did this?" Ren… how could you let something like this happen?! Surely, you would've thought of the corpse rotting, right? Well, apparently not, I guess! I expected him to be responsible for his actions, but I guess that I'm used to the Ren I know that I had high expectations from him…

"How disheartening! How could he just take the things that he needed and left without helping?! And after the amount of people who sacrificed themselves to help him, he still chose to leave?!" I could already feel the anger begin to boil inside Raphtalia as she was disappointed in Ren. Of course, so was I…

"All right, we'll be heading towards the mountains to deal with the corpse. Don't worry about paying for the medicine because it's free. If you want to repay me, then can you please buy some of our food?"

"Of course! Anything for helping the villagers lives, here!" A doctor and his assistant bowed to us to express their gratitude.

"That's good, we'll be heading out, then. Raphtalia, let's hurry and get rid of it!"

"Okay, we'll be right back! See you soon!" After that, we walked out the door to go deal with the problem Ren left us. Seriously, I'm going to have to give him a piece of my mind when I meet up with him again!

* * *

"The air… it reeks!" Raphtalia started to cough as we got closer to where the dragon laid. I'm guessing because of a Demi-Human's increased sense of smell that she's smelling it more than me. Well, I can't talk as the stench was hurting my nose. As we were wearing facemasks just in case of the dragon's corpse stench, we had managed to reach the destination of where the dragon's corpse was. It was a long ride, but we managed to pull through anything that was in the way.

"Man, the monsters on the way here were annoying! We couldn't waste any time dealing with them one after another, so luckily, Filo here was nice enough to blow right through them! Good job, Filo!" Fast Guard was a magic spell that I had learned from the grimoire that magic shop owner gave us. It proved to be useful at this point of time…

"Thank you, Master! Filo is always here to make Master proud of me!" After saying that, she happily dumped her head into the box of fruits we got yesterday. Really, Filo's appetite is seriously off the charts!

"So… this is the dragon's corpse? It smells worse than the air here! And Filo, try not to overeat! Watching you eat with this air is making me feel woozy..." As we stood in front of the dragon's corpse, we could see that it was indeed slain.

"You okay, Raphtalia? You can stand back while I'll try and deal with the corpse." Dealing with the dragon's corpse was something I hadn't thought about that much. How am I going to move a giant dragon's dead corpse to a place it won't stench the whole village?! Hmm, with the Rope Shield, we could possibly drag it far away from here…

"I'm… I'm fine! I can… deal with this! Let's just hurry up and deal with the corpse!" As Raphtalia started to walk towards the dragon's corpse, I could only worry about her. Hopefully, she isn't feeling sick because of the air here. Oh well, I minus will catch up with her, now…

Rage… that was all I could feel as I took one step closer.

"Raphtalia, get back!" Hearing me, Raphtalia ran back towards me as she didn't know what was happening. This dragon… it was dead! Why am I feeling negative emotions from this thing?! And plus… why can't I hear its thoughts?!

Suddenly, the dragon was back from the dead and standing tall…

Was this… a Zombie Dragon?!

*RAAAAAAAAAHHHH!* "Everyone, get back!" Raphtalia and I backed away from the dragon as it began to roar to the sky.

Zombie Dragon:

Level:?

We… can't see its level?! How… how strong is this damn thing?! If we can't see its level, then we're probably too low to even be here! We have to retreat!

"A dragon?! I hate dragons!" Jumping up from behind us, Filo jumped towards the dragon without thinking. The only thing I could feel from her was rage and determination. I remember back at the race that Filo was upset at the dragon that Motoyasu was riding on, so could it be… that Filo hates dragons? But for what reason?!

"Filo, don't go! We need to think of a plan first!" Kicking the dragon in the face, she dropped down onto the floor as she was ready to attack us again. No… that wasn't going to be enough to stop the dragon!

"Filo, stop! Come back!" Even as Raphtalia yelled, Filo didn't think about coming back to us as she was focused on dealing with the dragon with everything she had. She can't be acting so recklessly!

"Hiyaaa!" Kicking the dragon again, she bounced back onto the floor. She… needs to stop! We can't deal with it if she keeps attacking it without any plans!

"Filo, stop!" Yelling again, Filo jumped towards the dragon, only to be smacked by its tail. Crashing into a wall, Filo got back up and was ready to fight again.

"Don't look down on me!" Again, she jumped up to attack it. This… wasn't working!

"Filo, do you hear me?! I said stop!" She didn't care about what I said anymore. No matter how many times she got smacked down into the floor, she was just going to get back up again. Looking at her health, she was below 50%. She's… she's going to die at this rate!

"FILO! I SAID STOP! DO WHAT I TELL YOU TO DO!" Raising my voice even higher, I wanted her to hear me, I wanted her to stop attacking it so we could plan things out, I wanted us all to get back to safety…

..But my voice… only caused something bad to happen…

As I could see the crest on her chest begin to form…

It electrocuted her…

"PYAAAAAAAAAA!" I… didn't mean to do that! I didn't mean to use the ability of the crest! Filo, please, you have to-

*Clamp!*

Huh…?

Why is there… blood from the dragon's mouth…?

What just… happened?

Filo… where's… Filo?

"F...Filo?" Where did Filo go? She was… falling from the sky a… second ago. The dragon… just...

"Filo!" Hearing Raphtalia's panicked screams, I could only feel my eyes begin to burn. Where's Filo? What happened to Filo? Why isn't Filo here?

Where is Filo?

I can't hear her…

Was this… my fault? Was it because I… used the crest, that I made Filo… die? Filo… she was too young to die! She was… just a child!

Filo…

My fault…

My fault…

My fault…

MyfaultmyfaultmyfaultMyfaultmyfaultmyfaultMyfaultmyfaultmyfaultMyfaultmyfaultmyfaultMyfaultmyfaultmyfaultMyfaultmyfaultmyfaultMyfaultmyfaultmyfaultMyfaultmyfaultmyfault!

It's my fault she's… she's…!

_**Dead?** _

Suddenly, my entire vision was covered in darkness...

Huh? Who's that? Where am I? Where's Raphtalia? Where's Filo? Why aren't they here with me…?

_**Weak-Minded Fool** _

Fool? I'm a… fool?

_**You Wish For Power, Don't You?** _

Power…?

**Yes, Power! The Power To Destroy Our Enemies! The Power To Show The World Who We Are!**

Power to… show the world?

_**Let It Control You! Sadness, Envy, Anger, Let They ARE Our Power**_! 

Then… I'll be able to save them… I'll be able to save everyone!

_**Hate Them! Hate Them! Hate Them! Hate The World That Hates You!** _

Because of them… this happened? Because… of Ren, this happened? Because of… this world this happened? Because of… how weak I am… this happened?

_**HATE THEM! THEY TRIED TO TAKE FROM YOU! HATE THEM! HATE THEM!** _

It's…

**"MY FAULT! GRAAGHHHHHHHHH!"**

* * *

Raphtalia

"You… You'll pay for that!" Unsheathing Crocea Mors, I was ready to attack the dragon, no matter if the air here was nauseating! It… it killed Filo!

**"MY FAULT! GRAGHHHHHHHHH!"** That… scream! That's…!

"Mr. Jaune!" As I turned to Mr. Jaune, strong wind started to erupt from him. Was he… losing control of himself again?!

"Mr. Jaune, control yourself? Please, control yourself! You can't lose yourself to-" I wasn't able to speak anymore as I was pushed back a bit from the wind that was coming from him. As his face was beginning to form that mask again, his hair had turned black. He was transforming into that form again! I… I have to stop him!

"Mr. Jaune, please!" Grabbing his head in agony, the mask had already formed around his entire face. His shield had already transformed into the Boarbatusk Shield… wait, what's going on with it? It's starting to… change into a different shield! Black, and red linings all around it… it's a shield I haven't seen before! But… the Boarbatusk Shield keeps changing back and forth with one another!

"Mr. Jaune!" Watching him drop his Boarbatusk Shield down, he was going to use that move that caused his shield to roll! I… have to stop him! Running to him, I grabbed his arm, causing some pain to flow within me.

_**HATE THEM! THEY TRIED TO TAKE FROM YOU! HATE THEM! HATE THEM!** _

Huh? Who's voice is that? Is this what's going through Mr. Jaune's mind…?

_**Demi-Human… You Hate The World As Well?** _

Not wanting to listen any longer, I shut my eyes and begin to concentrate on Mr. Jaune. I… can't fall under this voice's tricks! I have to save Mr. Jaune!

"Split…" As the Boarbatusk Shield began to roll, it was then covered in fire. Not only that, but it managed to turn into two separate shields! As it continued to roll and roll, the shields were covered in fire… almost as if they had turned into fireballs!

"Mr. Jaune! Please, wake up!" As the two shields began to roll towards the dragon, one of the shields had managed to smack the dragon in the face, causing its face to catch on fire. And then, the second one hit its face, again and again and again and again and again. He's… controlling the shields with this much concentration!

"Hate… the...world that… hates me…" Hearing him, I looked up to him to see that he was crying under his mask. He doesn't want this! He's being controlled by these shields!

"Mr….Jaune!" Reaching up to his mask, I managed to pull it up to reveal his dull face. The pain I was feeling was starting to burn my entire body. It's as if my entire body was about to catch on fire! Positive… emotions, right? He… should feel them from me… right? It should... cool him down, right?

"There's no way I can hate you! Remember… I… am your world!" As I was beginning to lose strength in my body, I could feel Mr. Jaune's arm catch me as I was about to fall. Did he… wake up?

…

…

…

...

"Raph...talia! Please! Don't leave me! Fast Heal! Fast Heal! Fast Heal! I… I need an antidote!" He's… back to his old self… that's good…

…

…

…

…

"Stop! I won't listen to you anymore!" Something tight had a hold of me… was this the dragon's hand? Slightly opening my eyes, from what I can make out from my blurry vision, I can see Mr. Jaune with that mask on the side of his head. Who's he… talking to?

…

…

…

"I… have to save Raphtalia! Don't… think you can control me with negative emotions, Grimm! I am my own self! If I'm fighting the world, then I'm going to fight for my own recognition! There is no WE!"

…

…

…

* * *

Huh? Where… where am I? Is this… a bed? Sitting up a bit, I could feel some pain in my body. My arms, chest, and head are wrapped in bandages so… we made it back to the village! That means… Mr. Jaune is all right! But… Filo is…

"How are you feeling, Raphtalia? Does anything hurt?" Hearing a familiar woman's voice, I turned to the right to see the woman who works for the doctor of this village was sitting on a chair right next to me.

"No… not that much anyway. Where's… Mr. Jaune?" She giggled a bit before sitting up from her chair and walking to the door. It was opened a bit, but I could see… blonde hair and ears?

"All right, you two, it's time to come on out!" Upon opening the door, revealed Mr. Jaune with the Boarbatusk Shield. And… Filo's right behind him! She was alive?!

"S-sorry, I didn't… I couldn't-" As Mr. Jaune's face became red, he looked shy.

"It's all right! Look, she's awake and I think you should go talk to her! Good luck!" As the woman left the room, everyone had been quiet.

"Both of you… I'm sorry this happened to us. If I had thought of something to deal with the dragon, we wouldn't be like this. Raphtalia is hurt because of me..." For Mr. Jaune to be apologizing to us like this is making me feel… sad. He shouldn't be apologizing. I am Mr. Jaune's sword, and I hesitated to attack with Filo. If anything, this was my fault.

"Master, you shouldn't be apologizing! If anything I should! I hate dragons and I… acted recklessly!"

"Y-yeah, you shouldn't be apologizing! None of this was your fault! I hesitated to attack together with Filo! It wasn't your fault in the slightest!" I wanted him to know that it wasn't his fault at all. He'll only beat himself over it because that's something he does when something he doesn't like happens…

"We… all should become better teammates, all right? If we keep being separated like this, then… we'll only end up doing things more recklessly. Is everyone okay with that?" After hearing him say that, I could see that he was a bit up in his spirits.

"Yes! We promise to become better and stronger! Right, Filo?!"

"Yes! For Master, I'll become best friends with Raphtalia!" Smiling, Mr. Jaune put his hand on Filo's head and began to pet her. He… used to do that when I was troubled a long time ago… time as changed since then. I was a shy and scared little girl before, but now… because I grew up with Mr. Jaune, I've gotten this far! I haven't been able to decide on anything that much as Mr. Jaune always did so for me. Now… tonight, I should… decide on something on my own!

"Oh, Master, I got something for you!" Filo reached into her pocket on her dress to pull out a purple crystal of some sort. It was… pretty. Where did… Filo get something like that?

"What's this, Filo?" Taking it from her hand, Mr. Jaune looked took a closer look at the purple crystal.

"It's a crystal I found inside the dragon!" Inside the dragon? Did that mean that Filo… was able to come from out of the dragon? I should probably ask about it tomorrow. Right now, I should probably get some rest.

"Wait, you didn't throw this up, did you?" Hearing that, Filo automatically stomped onto the floor. She… didn't eat the dragon did she? She… couldn't have eaten something that rotten, right?

"Of course not! I saved this so I can give this to you! It's a gift as gratitude for saving me!" Hearing that, Mr. Jaune put the crystal inside the gem on his shield which started to absorb it. Gratitude… when have I ever do or give something for Mr. Jaune as gratitude?

"Low level? And… that shield wasn't in that upgrade tree…" Hearing him mumble something, I looked at him to see if everything was all right.

"Mr. Jaune? Is everything all right?"

"Huh? Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks, Filo, I really appreciate the gift…" Hugging Filo, he thanked her. I'm guessing he's still shaken that he almost lost Filo…

"Really?! Yay, Master loves my gift! Master loved my gift!" As Filo began to skip towards the door, Mr. Jaune started to walk towards me.

"Mr. Jaune, are you sure you're-" All of a sudden, Mr. Jaune wrapped his arms around me.

"I… I'm sorry. I… I didn't mean to hurt you. I was… so worried that I was going to lose the two of you that I lost control over myself…" As I felt his tears drip on the bed, I felt tears begin to form in the corner of my eyes…

"It's… okay, Mr. Jaune. We're both okay, that's all that matters. I… was also afraid of losing you. When I touched you… I thought your mind was already too far gone. I… wanted to save you, Mr. Jaune. No matter what, if you lose your mind again, just remember that not only me, but Filo is there for you..."

"But… I almost killed you! How could you… still want to stay by my side?! I'll just keep losing control of myself and-"

My face went to his, not wanting to hesitate anymore. Softness was what I could feel. This… was the only gift of gratitude I could give to him. Moving away from him, I could see that his eyes were widened and his face was red all over...

"Then… I'll continue to stay by your side. No matter the circumstance, I will never leave your side. You've been doing the same for me ever since I was young, right? You decided to take care of me, even if you didn't know me, you decided to take in a child that was lost and depressed. Your… kindness was what made me into the woman I am today. Because… because I'm a woman now, I want to make my OWN decisions. And that… is to stay at your side until the end of time. If you fall, I will be there to pick you back up. I'm… made this decision because… I… I love you, Mr. Jaune!"

"..." Mr. Jaune looked to the floor, causing his hair to get in the way. Did he… not feel the same way? But… even if he doesn't it doesn't change the fact that I'll stay by his side. Even then… I wanted him to know how I felt…

"...Do it again." It was a mumble, but I could still hear him.

"Huh?" Leaning at bit towards me, I could see his azure and crimson eyes begin to waver. Was it… for anticipation?

"YOU do it! I… want to feel it again!" By 'it'... did he mean… love? Is that why he kept acting like that with his Boarbatusk Shield? Because… he didn't know how to express himself to me? Was the shield there as a means for… understanding me?

"O-okay, Mr. Jaune." Upon touching the both of his cheeks, he flinched and diverted his eyes from me.

"Mr. Jaune… are you afraid of me?"

"O-of course not! I'm just… preparing myself. It's… just that I didn't think… someone would… you know…" Looking somewhere else and back to me constantly, I could tell he was… nervous. That's right… Mr. Jaune said that not a single girl was interested in him before…

"...Can you… look at me in my eyes, Mr. Jaune?" Turning to look at me in the eyes, they were still wavering and his ears began to twitch wildly. Not wanting to waste another second… I closed the space between us again. We stayed like that for a few seconds and then moved away from each other a bit.

"Why…?" After saying that, Mr. Jaune had been covered in a flash of green light. Shielding my eyes because of how bright it was, I was shocked at the sudden light. After the light finished, Mr. Jaune collapsed on the floor.

"Mr. Jaune!" Not caring if it hurts to move, I got up from my bed and went to Mr. Jaune's unconscious body. However… what happened to him… I didn't know. All I could see…

Was black hair being on the tips of his blonde hair, and the same mask that he wore when he was out of control on the side of his head? It… didn't look like he hadn't lost control of himself, but he's… different.

What happened to Mr. Jaune?

(A/N)

**Okay, I bet everyone didn't see that coming. All right, I know people will… hate me for writing this, but this was something that Jaune needed to at least have some control over himself. If a positive emotion in the Boarbatusk Shield is dominant, then that's what happens. I'm not going to explain what happened to him in this chapter but in the next chapter. Shitty? You might call it that, but I guess that's okay. I'm interested in writing romance a lot so this is the first time I'm writing one in this story. Now, if this is going to be a harem, will girls be thrown all over him? NO! The reason why I wrote this between the two is that they spent a long time with one another. No one else, but just the two of them. Now, does it feel rushed? Maybe. Because I hadn't written a lot of things between the two other than the anime moments, it might feel that way. But some of them we had already seen...**

**Now, will I continue to follow the anime? No. Soon, I'll give a chapter or two, but things are going to be different from the anime. I'm going to be trying my HARDEST to not make this into a generic or maybe terrible harem anime. Just… stay tuned, all right? See you guys soon. I'm going to be focusing on a different fanfiction or two that I've neglected. I'll come back to this in a 2 days give or take. Hopefully, I won't be addicted to writing this as I've been doing so for the past few days…**

**And if any of you like Naofumi/Raphtalia, then check out my other story "Love's Sprouting in Melromarc High". I personally like writing this because I love writing romance a lot. You might call it my favorite genre…**

**Anyway, sorry for the ones who might not like this, but I promise that there is more to come...**


	12. Chapter 12

I could feel it all: rage, sadness, happiness… I could feel all of the feelings that were bottled up inside of me. They are swimming in a pool that I could consider my mind. These emotions… don't and can't control me. Because these emotions are mine… and they are me. Whether I'm half-grimm or Human, these emotions are me. Love, compassion, benevolence… they were… given to me. Emotions that are mine… and they are not at the same time…

"Where… what happened?" Upon waking up, I could only feel warmth around my body. It was… soft and I felt like I could melt from the warmth that I'm feeling. It wasn't… like the feeling from the emotions that I felt from Raphtalia… it was actually… warmth. This was… a bed, right? I'm laying on a bed and there are soft pillows that were under me. Something twitched on my back… what was that?

"Mmmm…" Nudging something a bit light, I heard someone next to me. They sounded like they were sleeping, so I have to try my best of being quiet at this point. They shifted, causing them to wrap their hands around me. They shifted, causing their leg to go over mine. As the hazy sight upon waking up started to go away, I was able to see clearly. Trying to get up from the bed, a hand from the person had been wrapped around my head and forced me back down. Again, I felt a twitch on my back.

"Raph...talia?" Recognizing the shirt that the person wore, I automatically knew that this person was Raphtalia. Seeing bandages around her neck and chest, I could only feel sadness. As I was able to move my freed left hand, I touched the bandages. From her neck to her-

"Wait, Raphtalia?!" Forcing myself away from her, I didn't feel the soft surface I was laying on before and hit the cold hard floor. The only thing was that I landed on my rear.

"Fw...ah? Huh? Mr. Jaune, are you all right?" Hearing Raphtalia's concerned voice, I looked up to see Raphtalia looking worried about me.

"Ow! Why is that bed so short to begin with?!" Standing back up, I started to massage my rear to make the pain-wait, there was no pain? Oh yeah, I forgot that I'm the Shield Hero so not that many things that would harm me usually would hurt me now.

"S-sorry, you collapsed last night and… I didn't want you to sleep on the floor so I… we shared the bed…" Raphtalia's bangs started to cover her eyes as she looked down at the bed. Her tail that she was trying to hide behind her was wagging uncontrollably.

"Oh… I passed out last night? Sorry, my memories are a bit hazy, can you tell me what happened last night?" Man, I felt like my memories had been reset or something like that. All I remember is-" Before I could speak any more than that, Raphtalia was in my face. Her face was red like Ruby's cape, her ears were twitching, and her tail was still wagging. Did… something happened last night?

"What do you mean you don't remember?!" Raphtalia seemed to be REALLY upset for some reason. I'm… sure something happened last night that was important to me, but I can't remember. It's like… I was born anew last night. I can't describe the feeling, but… something about me feels… new.

"Sorry, Raphtalia… can you tell me? It'll… be a big help." Raphtalia's expression saddened a bit, before becoming nervous-like.

"...We kissed last night." Hearing those words from her… made my heart skip a beat. We… kissed? Wha-hold on, I… I need a break to think this through. If we did… kiss last night, then why can't I remember any of it?

"We… seriously… I mean… you and me? We… kissed? This isn't a game, right? I… you… a girl… likes me?" My brain was having a hard time trying to process this. Raphtalia and I… we kissed? I… believe her, but it… doesn't feel real. I… never imagined that someone would like me.

"Yes, Mr. Jaune… we kissed. You… wanted me to do it, so… I did it." There was a brief pause between us two. I couldn't say anything because… I actually… have a… girlfriend. Raphtalia's… my girlfriend. Raphtalia's my girlfriend. Raphtalia's my girlfriend. Raphtalia's my girlfriend.

"AHHHHHH!" I screamed because I couldn't believe what was playing inside my head over and over again. I didn't scream in agony, I screamed because… because… I'm happy? I can't really describe it, but my heart is just telling me that I'm happy.

"Mr. Jaune, are you all right?!" Taking my hand, she wanted to know if I was all right. The redness that I was feeling in my cheeks when she did that made my heart skip a beat again. Raphtalia… was a woman. She was a woman that had taken an interest in me and she… kissed me!

"N-no, I'm all right! It's just… what does that… make us?" I didn't know why I said that. Of course I knew what it meant for us! I just… wanted to hear it from Raphtalia so I could have some… clarifications.

"I'll… be whatever you want me to be. Your sword, your world, your… m-mate, or just Raphtalia. It doesn't matter what happens next, all I want you to know in this present day… is that I love you." I could only smile. Smile that Raphtalia… was just Raphtalia. Not like any other girl who was after the man who could've been the richest, the strongest, or the best-looking. She… loved me. Everything that led up to this, our meeting, our fun days, our travels, going to another world… everything led up to here. And… I couldn't be any happier in any other day. Compared to being accepted to Beacon… she made me happier.

"Raphtalia… thank you. Thank you for everything that you've done for me. Because of you… I couldn't be any happier with this sad life of mine." Her hand was starting to shake as her entire body began to shake.

"Jeez, Mr. Jaune, why are you saying "thank you"? You shouldn't be the person saying that, because… because I'm the one who's supposed to be saying that." As she looked up at me, I could see tears starting to leak out from her eyes. "If… if we hadn't met, then… I don't know what I would've done with myself. I once thought that my life wasn't worth saving because I lost everything that day. The day… when I lost my parents and friends… I died. I couldn't stand being lonely after losing them… but you saved me, Mr. Jaune. Not only that, you showed me kindness even though I was a Demi-Human. Even when I couldn't be happy, you never gave up. As you never gave up, you took risks just so you can save me. I… couldn't be any happier knowing that Mr. Jaune, the Shield Hero, had saved my life and showed me a life that's worth walking with you for. Thank you, Mr. Jaune… for everything that you've done for me." I… wiped the tears from off her cheeks and smiled. It felt like it's been forever, but I cried.

"When you first lost control over yourself, I was scared. I thought… that after you lost yourself, you wouldn't be the same Mr. Jaune I know. I couldn't leave you there, so… I took the risk, Mr. Jaune. You looked like you were going to attack anyone you saw, including the other Heroes. But… I didn't want that. I didn't want to lose the Mr. Jaune that was filled with kindness. I didn't want to lose the Mr. Jaune that I loved with all of my heart. When you woke up, I was happy. I was happy that even without accomplishing anything in my life, I was able to save the man that I loved. It didn't matter about the Waves that I stopped or that were coming up. It didn't matter if this world was going to end one day… if it's going to end, then I want to die with the man that risked so much to save my life. I want to stay-"

"I know, Raphtalia… I know. We… you, me, and Filo are going to have to stick together until everything is over. I don't know when I'll be able to go back to my own world, but… if you and Filo stay with me, then I'll stay as long as I can until I found a way back. Not only me… but I want us all to go there. There… I'm sure I can share a life with you that won't be like this world. Instead of constantly running away, we can share a life that… we want." Pulling her into a hug, I was happy. She… Raphtalia made me happy.

"If it's a life we can share together… then I can't wait for that day to come. I'll wait as long as it takes for that day to come. If I… can stay with you and Filo, then I don't care how the world treats us." Hugging me back, we… expressed how we felt. Stopping the hug, Raphtalia… closed her eyes and started to come closer to me. This… was going to my first kiss technically because I can't remember the actual first time. I… want this to be genuine. Closing my eyes… I started to close the space and-

"Well, look at the newly formed couple~!" As we both heard the voice of the doctor's assistant, we both recoiled. Looking at the door, we could only see her head as she was hiding behind the door. Why… why did she have to appear so suddenly?!

"No fair, Raphtalia! How come you can act all lovey-dovey with Master even when you're not feeling better?!" Filo's head popped up next under her.

"Um… I don't think I should be here for this…" After Filo, came a little girl with blue hair in the form of pigtails. That's… um, I'm sorry, who IS THAT GIRL?!

"Sorry, sorry, I couldn't help myself to see this~! A Demi-Human and the Shield Hero getting together just piques my interest~!" As the assistant fully opened the door, everyone that was hiding behind the door had come inside the room.

"I-I'm sorry for watching! I was just curious to see who the Shield Hero is, that's all!" As the blue haired girl came inside, I could see that she's wearing a blue and white frilly dress. By the looks of that dress, it basically tells me that she's rich or something like that. But it still doesn't tell me who she is…

"I-it's fine… but can you tell us who you are?" Raphtalia was the first to ask her the question we both wanted to know. If anything, Filo looks to be fine standing next to her, so I guess they're friends?

"Ah, how could I forget?! My name is Melty. And I need to speak with-"

"All right, before we can go along with the introduction, I need to go check on Raphtalia. Just give me one second, okay?" The assistant cut off Me...lty from introducing herself. As she walked up to Raphtalia, I walked towards Filo to see what was going on with the two of them.

"So, how did you two meet?"

"I met Mel while I was going out to find some monsters, Master! I was hungry, so I decided on finding some monsters that looked delicious and I found Mel!" Filo was happy as she remembered how she met Melty.

"Well, I… kind of followed her back here because I was… lost. But when I saw such a giant Filolial, I couldn't help it but want to figure out where she was going! When I caught up to her, she transformed into a little girl! That's so cool! Filo, you're so amazing!" Smiling at Filo, Melty looked to be excited that she met such a rare Filolial.

"Well, that's nice you two. Filo needed someone to talk to, so I guess it's fate that you two met!" I was happy for Filo. She now has a friend to talk to that's around her age and she doesn't seem the least bit bothered by her! As for Melty, I'm happy that she isn't one of those rich kids that saw themselves better than anyone else. In this world, I kind of expected people like that…

"Huh? That… can't be right!" Hearing the assistant's loud voice, we all looked at her to see what was wrong.

"Is there something wrong?" Asking her what was wrong, I could see that she was checking on the marks of the curse that she had under her bandages.

"The curse marks… their gone!" Wait, what? Her curse marks were gone from her body? I might not know about curses, but I'm sure… that they're not supposed to up and vanish. The assistant told me while she was sleeping that she needed stronger holy water to cure her, but… they're gone?

"Is that… normal?" Raphtalia didn't sound that worried about it, but I can tell that she's curious about it.

"No… at least, I haven't seen a curse that was able to vanish on its own before. It appeared to be a strong curse, though. How did it just go and vanish like that? Wait, Raphtalia, let me see your chest for a second." As the assistant was about to unwrap her bandages on her chest, I could only feet rising in my cheeks as I began to close my eyes.

"W-wait, do that when I'm out of the room!"

"Huh? I'm sure Raphtalia doesn't mind. You two ARE mates, after all." The way she said that so bluntly made my cheeks feel even more hotter. How could she just say that so casually?! And plus… w-why does she have to say m-mates?!

"It's fine, Mr. Jaune. I'm… not afraid to show myself to you…" Raphtalia, don't say it like that! My heart is starting to skip multiple beats! I'm going to die if this keeps up!

"B-but-"

"Mr. Jaune… do you... not like my body?" As she looked at me with pleading eyes, I couldn't think straight anymore. Gah! Why does she have to be like that! How much can a Demi-Human change into a woman like this?!

"...F-fine. Y-you win, R-Raphtalia…" Smiling at me, I felt like she was like that because she wanted me to look at her body… Raphtalia, when did you start to become bold like this? I'm not going to get used to her when she's like this! Even when she's… my girlfriend, I don't think I'll get used to her boldness!

"What? What is that?" After the assistant unwrapped her bandages to expose the top of her… breasts, we could the once purple crest, starting to emit blue light. As it was glowing blue, the curse marks that she had on her body began to disintegrate. That's… the same glow that Raphtalia had when I first met her and before we got summoned here. What… was that?

"U-um…" As I was staring for the longest at the crest, Raphtalia looked like she was a bit shy.

"Ah! S-sorry, Raphtalia!" I didn't want her to be uncomfortable, so I moved away from her.

"It's okay! I'm… happy that you looked, anyway…" Raphtalia… you're so pure!

"Well, this WAS something strange to look at, but as long as she doesn't have the curse, then everything's fine! To think, the Shield Hero and a Demi-Human as mates! This is something that might change the world!" Not taking what she was saying seriously, I chuckled nervously. Raphtalia could only be silent as her face became red. I don't think 'mates' is a word that we're not ready to say to each other…

"N-now to what I was saying, Sir Shield Hero, I need to speak to you. You… aren't busy, right?" Raphtalia looked at each other before shaking our heads. Well… I guess you say that we were before, but… I don't think I'll push farther than… kissing.

"Nope."

* * *

"So… you're going to be the next ruler of Melromarc, right?" As we said our goodbyes to the village and its people, we were headed back to the capital. As we were heading back, we didn't encounter any monsters, luckily. Either way, the party reached the highest level… which was 40. For whatever reason, we can't progress without… class upgrades that the Help menu talked about. For the reason we're going to the capital… is something I would never expect...

"Yes, I am the second princess, Princess Melty Melromarc, the first-in-line to the throne. I was going to tell you that before, but… there was complications." Remembering the assistant that cut off Metly before, I could only sigh. Well, she didn't know who she was, so I guess that's fine.

"Okay… I'm a little lost here. When the hell did that king have a younger daughter than the… first princess? And another thing, why is it now that you suddenly appear?"

"Mel's amazing~! See, Master?! I told you so~!" Filo exclaims, as she was happy to hear that the new friend that she made was the second princess of Melromarc. Now, what were the odds of this actually happening? This couldn't be fate, right?

"And I wanna know how you could be ahead of your sister for the throne. Isn't it supposed to be the first born that's supposed to inherit the throne?" Raphtalia was curious as well as to why or how she's the first-in-line princess. After taking off the bandages off of Raphtalia, she looked to be better. That's good.

"My sister has some… problems as anyone would say. She's a bit of a problem child because of her… personality." I nodded my head at that.

"Yep, I guess you can say that she has a 'problem'. And that 'problem' is to always look down on me with that king, and all of the other people in Melromarc!" Just thinking about what they've done to me and Raphtalia was making me a bit upset.

"I'm… sorry that you had to experience that, Sir Shield Hero. I… was sent to speak to you because my mother was concerned about the harsh treatment of the Shield Hero that's been going around in Melromarc. First, I was supposed to speak to my father to see what was happening, but… I managed to get lost from the ones escorting me because I was… curious about Filolials. I'm sorry!" She was… apologizing? I wasn't angry at her, so why is she apologizing for?

"Why are you apologizing for, Mel? You didn't do anything wrong…" Filo sounded depressed after Melty apologized. Huh, I guess if Melty's sad, then Filo's sad. What an odd thing…

"It's… because I want to apologize for my father and the people of Melromarc. I know that I-"

"Melty, you don't have anything to apologize and I'm not blaming you for anything. You're a sweet girl. I can see that because Filo trusts you. And if Filo trusts you, then we all trust you, okay?" Melty's eyes only widened after hearing me.

"You… thank you, Sir Shield Hero. I'll… be sure to discuss with my father about what's been happening in the kingdom!" Melty looked fired up enough to do that, so I could only smile.

"Yeah, I could see why you're better than your sister. You're more nicer and… less of a bitch of I should say at least." Melty could only laugh nervously after I said that.

"I… never heard someone call my sister that before… I guess that suits her because of everything she's done while we were younger. She always wanted to be ahead of me…" Melty could only smile sadly as she remembered the times she had with the first princess. I'm guessing that she's been like that ever since she was a child, huh? Well, oh well…

"Well, don't tell anyone I said that to you. Well, eventually, I'm sure something's going to happen that's going to make me call her that since she's bound to do something stupid, so I guess it's fair game, then." Melty could only giggle as she found it funny.

"The rumors about you were wrong, Sir Shield Hero. Whatever that might be said about you, never fall down from the place that you stand… and that's a Hero." I could only smile at her.

"Well, I found someone who'll be helping me along the way of my life, so I don't need to listen to what everyone says about me." Looking at Raphtalia, I couldn't be any happier with my life, right now. Yeah, it's pretty messed up, but because of her… it won't be so bad.

...And Raphtalia could only smile as she holds the reins on Filo…

* * *

"It's getting late, Mr. Jaune, why don't you rest?" As it was night, it was time to turn on in and sleep. Filo and Melty had gotten the food coma after eating the food I made for them, so they decided on turning in first. With Filo around, it's a bit more easier catching fish.

"Nah, you can sleep, I feel like I can stay the whole night up. Besides, I gotta make sure nothing happens to either of you…" As I was sitting on a log, Raphtalia came by to sit next to me. The moment she sat down, I was feeling nervous. Using a stick to keep the fire burning, I tried my best to focus entirely on it.

"...That's not fair, Mr. Jaune." Hearing her, I turned to her.

"What's not fair?" Raphtalia started to pout as she found something unfair.

"Why do you have to keep pushing yourself to protect us all the time? I… want to try protecting you for once during the night." I could only chuckle a bit after I heard her say that.

"Well, it's the Shield Hero's job to make sure his party is safe. I can't afford to drop my guard when my team's life is on the line." Even if Melty wasn't exactly part of my party, I find her to be someone worth keeping around because Filo's happy with her. If she's happy, then I'm happy. Looking back at the fire, I went back to what I was doing earlier.

"Then… who's going to protect you?" Stopping, I turned back to her.

"Huh? What do you mean by that?"

"Well… I know that you're the Shield Hero and all… but who's going to protect you?" I thought a bit to what she said before coming up with an answer.

"I guess… you two. Even as I'm protecting you two, both of you have tried your best to make sure we can continue living with this messed up life we have." Raphtalia stared at me silently before speaking again.

"Mr. Jaune… can I ask you something?" As her tail began wagging, I could tell she was nervous to ask me something that's been on her mind.

"Sure, what is it?"

"...Instead of going back… to your home… have you ever thought of a world that doesn't have any problems? Demi-Humans could live freely with care, no monsters to kill, and… a peaceful life that I want to share with you. Have you… ever thought of a world that's like that?" A world… that doesn't have monsters and problems? So… a perfect world that doesn't have anything wrong with it?

"...If there is dark, there is light. If there is light, there is dark. It's hard to say if there's a world like that exists. If it exists or not… it's fine. But… if we're talking about a peaceful world… then that would be you, Raphtalia." Raphtalia's eyes widen as she looked at me. "Because you're my peaceful world… I don't need to worry about the problems that we're going to face. I'm sure that we'll be able to-"

All of a sudden, I felt softness on my lips. Feeling Raphtalia's hands on my cheeks, she kissed me…

"A-ah! I-I'm sorry! I didn't-" Quieting her by pressing back, she started to melt into the kiss. A few seconds went by with us like that. After that, we moved away from each other a bit…

"That… was technically my first kiss, Raphtalia." I felt my cheeks get hotter a bit after saying that.

"W-well… I guess you can say it like that…" After that, we both became quiet. I… didn't know what to say after that. What do you say to a girl after kissing?! Am I going to have to read a book or something like that?!

"Mr. Jaune, where's Melty? Wasn't she sleeping next to Filo?" Hearing her, I noticed that Melty wasn't sleeping next to Filo anymore. Walking up to Filo, she was sleeping soundly. All I could see…

"Wait, is that her clothes next to her?" Picking up Melty's clothes, Raphtalia looked up to Filo. Upon realizing something, her face was of shock.

"Raphtalia… you don't think…" Suddenly, I heard Filo's feathers begin to shake.

"Huh? Is it morning, yet?" And what came out of Filo's feathers was a very tired Melty. And… without her clothes on?! What the hell?!

"Melty, how did you get up there? And why did you take your clothes off?" I asked the obvious question with a blunt voice.

"Huh? It isn't morning? Oh, morning, Sir Shield Hero, I was just tired and I felt Filo's warm feathers and I… yawn… wanted to sleep more comfortably…" Raphtalia and I could only look at her with an 'are you serious' look. Shortly after yawning again, she went back into Filo's feathers. Okay… I just want to know… how soft are they?

"Are Filo's feathers really THAT soft?" Upon getting close to Filo to touch her feathers, Raphtalia was starting to sucked into Filo's her eyes were starting to close, she was starting to sleep. Huh, why I feel like this is deja-vu?

"...Well, I guess I can't avoid this, can I?" Sitting down next to Raphtalia, I started to sink into Filo's feathers as well. They were so soft… that I couldn't resist such fluffiness. It was like I was sinking in a basket of multiple pillows. My eyes are starting to feel a bit heavy now…

As I closed my eyes, I could only allow myself to go into the world of dreams…

But not before feeling Raphtalia's soft hand over mine...

**(A/N) **

**I'm going to start doing a little bit of shorter chapters so they don't get too lengthy. I feel like my fingers are dying on me... and that doesn't even make sense. Anyway, this was just a short chapter for Raphtalia's and Jaune's reactions with one another. I don't know if you guys would find this cute, but I did... hey, I don't have a relationship with anyone so don't look at me with such judgmental eyes! Man... I gotta start writing some more things, now. I'll be updating this from time to time because I don't want to use all of my time just updating this story. Some other stories require my assistance after all, since I've been getting some requests to continue them. **


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N**

**Sorry for the lack of updates to this story, guys. I was thinking about updating this story sooner, but apparently, trouble likes to come my way like Jaune. Not only trouble likes to come, but soon, I'm going to start college...! Yeah, I don't know if I'm going to be able to update this story without any stress in my hands. My health is only going to get worse, isn't it? **

"_Have you ever thought of a world that doesn't have any problems? Demi-Humans could live freely with care, no monsters to kill, and a… peaceful I want to share with you." _The more I keep hearing that in my head, the more anxious I become to even think if that could be true or not. World traveling shouldn't be anything new since… we ended up here. However, would it even be possible to travel to another world from here? Would it be random? Or could I just choose what kind of world I'll like?

...Is there even a way for me to get back home to everyone?

Forgetting about another world, forgetting about the life I have here, would I still be able to get back home to see everyone again? My parents? My friends? What… am I going to do? I can't even get back without helping this world with their problems. But… will everyone be okay with what I've become? Part… Grimm? Would that even be okay with everyone? No! I'm sure that they wouldn't think too much of it. If I just explained my situation to them, we'll all laugh happily as if I'm joking… but I wasn't.

"_Just talk to us about it, and everything will become clear to them. They're all concerned, Jaune." _

**I ignored them. Pyrrha, and everyone else. I ignored them. When they wanted to know what was wrong with me, I only ignored them. They… don't even know about the fake transcripts that I used to enter Beacon. They won't accept someone like me to come back. Someone who's half-Grimm and a liar to enter Beacon? Who would even accept that kind of person with open arms? **

"_Mr. Jaune…" _

**The moment they know that I cheated to enter Beacon, as soon as **_**everyone **_**knows that I cheated to enter Beacon, I'll be kicked out. I won't be treated as a Human anymore. I'll be treated as someone who lies to get what he wants. **

"_Mr. Jaune…!" _

**The moment they know that I'm half-Grimm, they'll kill me. I'll be treated as any stray Grimm that's out in the woods. I'll be cut down… as any other Grimm out there. **

"Mr. Jaune, wake up!" Hearing Raphtalia's raised voice, I opened my eyes to be greeted with the sight of Raphtalia and Filo in my face.

"...This won't happen on a regular basis, right?" Raphtalia and Filo only smiled when I said that.

"Wake up, Sleepy Master! We have to get Mel-Mel back to the kingdom!" Oh yeah, that's… that's right. Metly's… second to the throne, so we have to get her back to the kingdom where… everyone hates us. How would it even look if someone like us, the ones who are hated by the people for who they are, deliver someone of importance to the king? It'll cause multiple misunderstandings.

"Mr. Jaune, is everything okay? You look… a bit pale. Did you have a bad dream?" While I was still sitting on the floor, Raphtalia, who was worried about me, knelt down to see my face. She's… she's too close! Too close to my face!

"I-I'm fine, Raphtalia! No need to get so close, okay?!" It should be normal for the person you're in a relationship with to be this close to you, right? Oh, I'm such an inexperienced son of a-

"You lie, Mr. Jaune. One does not sweat as much as you are doing now. And even your face is red! I can tell that you're lying to me, Mr. Jaune!" With her fist raised to her chest, I can tell that she was a bit angry for lying to her. Even her tail was starting to wag a bit uncontrollably.

"The reason my face is red… it's because… you're… too close." Upon saying that, Raphtalia opened her mouth slightly and her tail stopped wagging.

"Oh. I-I'm… sorry, Mr. Jaune…" With a reddened face, she moved back a bit. After that, it took only a second for her tail to start wagging again. This time… from affection. Oh, how much I hate this stupid side effect because of the Boarbatusk Shield…

"I-It's fine! It's just… yeah, I guess you can say that I had a bad dream. I wasn't… _that _asleep, I was just thinking to myself. I don't remember when I woke up, but I could tell that I was just thinking to myself. Sorry if I worried you. I just… want to know..." Scooting over a bit to put my hand over hers, I looked at her in the eyes. "If I become something that's abnormal in the future, and if I don't look like myself anymore… would you still accept me?" Her eyes didn't widen in surprise. Instead, she only smiled. When her lips curved into that smile, my heart, my brain, my body become excited. It was just like that day… the day when I first saw her smile when she was young. In that day, I felt accomplished because I was able to have someone who experienced so much pain… smile because of what I did for them. She truly…

"Whether you become a dragon, a slime, an orange balloon, or even a monster that I won't even recognize, I will still stay by your side, Mr. Jaune. Even in sickness and death, nothing would separate the two of us from each other." The feeling of compassion and affection was really starting to get into my head right now. I… fallen in love with a Demi-Human. A Demi-Human who deserves so much more than me… was saying something that you're supposed to say in a marriage, but in the strangest way possible.

Yes, she truly makes my day.

* * *

"Thank you for everything you've done for me, Sir Shield Hero. Is it alright for you to be left alone out here?" While the journey was short, we managed to get into the kingdom without any problems with other people. Well, I basically had to hide inside the carriage so no one could see me.

"Well, we got this far without anyone noticing me, so I guess I'll be fine. You should hurry along and find some soldiers that can escort you farther than here. You'll… be fine on your own, right?" Should I even ask that? Melty was the daughter of the king, so there could be people out here that would be after her. Should we walk her a bit farther? But if I get seen with Melty, then people are going to get… rather annoying about her situation. Escort the girl to her home, or get her in trouble because of my worry?

"There's no need to worry about me, Sir Shield Hero. I've burdened you enough to escort me here, so there's no need for you to risk your safety for my well-being. And besides, I know a few spells that can help me when I'm in dire need." Even while she smiles, I could only be nervous.

"...If you say so, then. Farewell, Melty." While she waves us goodbye, Filo looked at the ground with sadness. While she was the king's daughter, she didn't even act like she was higher than all of us. She's not like her sister, that's for sure. She's the absolute opposite of her sister. For Filo, I guess she's going to miss Melty the most, huh?

"Even if she's the king's daughter, I don't see any kind of resemblance to her father or sister. Mr. Jaune… I never thought you would be concerned that much of her safety. I would've thought you would just say your goodbye and we'll be on our way." Well, if Melty was like her sister, then I don't think she would've made it to the kingdom because I would've just left her without hearing her out.

"Well, nothing wrong with that, right? Nothing wrong with doing the right thing, Raphtalia." But even if she was… I don't think I would stomach the realization that I just left a young girl out in the middle of nowhere…

"Right, Mr. Jaune. There's nothing wrong with helping a child that is in need of help." She smiled and closed her eyes after she said that. I didn't say anything after that. I could only smile while remembering the first time we met. Looking at Filo, she was still looking sad as she still looked at the direction Melty left. Hmm, how can I make Filo feel better? Food? A toy? Or maybe…

"Mel-Mel…" Walking up to her, I could hear her silently saying Melty's nickname that Filo gave her. Standing in front of her, I turned around her knelt down. Noticing this, Filo looked at me with widened eyes.

"Master… what are you doing?" While I was still looking back at her, I grinned.

"Hop on, Filo! We're going for a piggy-back ride!" Hearing Raphtalia giggle, I only grinned some more. Filo, who didn't understand the gesture, tilted her head in confusion.

"Piggy-back… ride?"

"Yup! Think of it as me riding on your back, Filo. Well, when you're in your Filolial form, that is. Just put your hands on my shoulders and we'll have lift-off!" Walking up to me, Filo put her hands on my shoulders and waited for the next step. When she did that, I wrapped my arms around her legs and picked her up.

"M-Master!" Being slightly shocked with the way I picked her up, I looked back at her and smiled.

"You've been doing this for who knows how long, so it's time for me to repay the favor! Now, let's go hurry up back to the carriage, alright? You must be really tired, right, Filo?" She didn't say anything. She only buried her head into my back and waited for us to move. Well, this _is _embarrassing to a child who's not used to this, so I guess I can respect her embarrassment.

"Let's go, Raphtalia!" Turning around fully to face Raphtalia, I could see a warm smile on her face. And that warm smile… only makes my heart feel warm.

"Yes! Let us be on our way!" With that, with Filo on my shoulders and Raphtalia by my side, we walked back to the carriage so we could leave the kingdom. Oh, what a life this is.

"Filo, how's it going up there?" As we walked through the town of Melromarc, I noticed the looks that were being directed towards us, mostly at Raphtalia and myself. I didn't need to look at them that much to know if they were angry at us or not. I only needed to feel the emotions that were surrounding me. But… in the corner of my eye, I saw a random townsperson whispering to a nearby soldier. This… possibly wasn't a good idea…

"It's super fun! I wanna do this more often!" Well, as long as Filo is happy, then there's nothing wrong with her requesting that we do this more often. But, for now, let's just focus on getting back to the carriage… and quickly.

"Mr. Jaune, I think you should probably put Filo down now. We're… getting a few eyes staring at us." By a few, I hope she doesn't mean a huge majority of the people in the town. Literally, there is a whole bunch of emotions that I am feeling now. Geez, who knew that someone giving a child a piggy-back ride could be annoying to others?

"No! I wanna enjoy this more!" Although me and Raphtalia noticed the looks, it seems that Filo is either ignoring them or not noticing them. Either way, a happy Filo... is the best Filo.

"Filo, don't act like a child! You've had your fun on Mr. Jaune's back, so it's to get off!" Raphtalia was barely managing to keep her voice into a whisper. Please, the last thing I need is both of them arguing with one another…

"I'm not acting like a child! You're just jealous that I get to ride Master's back! Bleh!" Sticking her tongue at Raphtalia, Filo still refused to get off of my back as we walked.

"I-I-I am not jealous! Filo, get off of Mr. Jaune's back before I-"

"Don't wanna! Don't wanna! Don't wanna!"

"Stop doing-"

"I can't hear you up here, Raphtalia! I'm busy being on Master's back!"

"You responded to my voice just now! If you couldn't hear me, then you wouldn't have-!" Noticing that Raphtalia stopped talking, I stopped where I stood to see Raphtalia slowly moving her hand to her hilt with a serious look. Wait… she's not planning on harming Filo, is she?!

"W-wait, Raphtalia… there's no need to get angry at Filo! We're almost at the carriage, so please-"

"Jaune!" Hearing a familiar voice, I turned around to see Motoyasu jumping towards me with his spear in hand… wait, WHAT IS HE DOING?!

_Clang! _While I Filo on my back, I couldn't raise my shield to protect myself. However, before his spear was able to come close to me, Raphtalia was quick enough to parry his spear away, causing him to stop right in front of Raphtalia.

"You dare attack Mr. Jaune while his guard was down?!" Hearing Raphtalia's angered voice, I could tell that she was a moment before attacking Motoyasu with the same amount of intent he had for trying to kill me.

"Tch! I was right about you all along, Jaune! You're nothing but disgusting trash! For Raphtalia to follow you… is truly aggravating!" Pushing Raphtalia back with his spear, he points the end of his spear at me with a glare.

"What?! What are you even talking about now?! I didn't even do anything! And why are you suddenly attacking me in the middle of the town where innocent people are?!" I knew that these people were nothing close to innocent. However, I had to find some way with my words to convince him to not attack me where a whole bunch of people can see me. Soon, when word gets around, the blame would only shift towards me.

"Don't you dare try to play the fool! How dare you try to take advantage of Raphtalia! She trusted you, and you decide to something so inconceivable to her?!" Not just me, but even Raphtalia was confused by what he meant. She even lowered her sword a bit!

"I don't know what you're talking about! I haven't even done anything to Raphtalia! How would you even know if I did anything to her at all?! I wasn't even in town!" Gripping his spear, his glare only hardened.

"Stop lying! I know you made Raphtalia into your slave! How could you even do something so inhuman to her?!" What? How in the hell did he know that I-no, who told him about this?! Did that shady merchant sell us out?!

"..." I couldn't say anything to him because I knew it was true. I couldn't-or rather, I didn't choose to speak anything else to him. Even if I tried to cover myself up, people wouldn't believe in the Shield Hero.

They will only believe in the Spear Hero.

"Not going to say anything? Ha, I knew you were disgusting! So everything about you was-" Before he could continue, the sound of another clang echoed into the air. The cause of it was Raphtalia blatantly attacking Motoyasu without hesitating. I don't know if he was lucky or not, but he was able to block Raphtalia's attack.

"...I will not tolerate disrespect towards Mr. Jaune. Leave, or I will not hesitate to cut you where you stand." With Raphtalia having a more demanding and threatening voice, I slightly shivered. Who knew Raphtalia could become this… scary.

"Raphtalia, you don't have to follow Jaune anymore! Why would you even want to be his-"

"Wait, that's enough!" Coming into view, a teenager that was around the age of 16, who armor that was similar to the soldiers in Melromarc, yelled out to the both of them, causing Raphtalia and Motoyasu to look at him.

"T-this is a public place! There shouldn't be a reason to fight in this area! Take this fight elsewhere!" While he hesitated to speak at first, he was focused on the safety of the people in the area.

"Oh, but you shouldn't be worrying about that anymore!" Another familiar, yet, _annoying _voice… yup, I knew it was a bad idea to stick around for too long. From the moment I saw that person speak to that soldier, I knew trouble was coming our way. The only problem was when it was going to happen. Now, with Motoyasu and the… annoying woman he has with him being here, trouble… was only going to be worse for me.

"Surround them!" Giving her order, the soldiers started to surround me, Raphtalia, Filo, Motoyasu and… the new appearance that came along. Feeling a tug on my shirt, I looked back at Filo to see her clenching my sleeve in her fist while her head was buried in my back. And it looks like Filo is close to snapping… isn't that just great? The whole point of the piggy-back ride was to get Filo to be happier, but here comes trouble when I want to make my teammates enjoy life a bit more…

...**Annoying? **Who…?

Putting a scroll up on display for everyone to see, the princess smirked at me. Yup, she is truly a pain to deal with. "Ladies and gentlemen! I hereby declare an official duel between the Spear Hero, Lord Motoyasu, and the Shield Hero! Thanks to the royal crown, it has granted me the authority to make this fight official! Not only the Shield Hero, but the Shield Hero's Demi-Human will be participating as well! Lord Motoyasu, feel free to fight without any complications!" Okay, I can deal with you messing around with my life, but I won't allow you to drag Raphtalia into your damn games! Okay, I might've lied about dealing with how fucked up my life has become because of her, but that's not the point!

"Thanks, Malty! Now, I'll be sure to end this once and for-"

"Weapons down, soldiers!" Okay, _another _familiar voice joined the scene. But I'm actually happy to hear this one's voice, though. With a calm demeanor, she walked next to me with soldiers right behind us. Melty… how happy I am to see you!

"Mel-Mel!" Poking her head out from behind me, Filo yelled out her name in excitement. Melty to respond to her, but I noticed that she twitched a bit, before clenching her fist when she said her name. What was going on here? Is it… because of her position? Or… is she not responding because she didn't want us to get in trouble? Either way, because of Melty's presence, the soldiers knelt down as fast as possible.

"I am forbidding the Heroes from fighting among themselves!" Seeing that she was here, the princess could only glare at her younger sister. Seriously, how are they even related?

"You… what are you doing here?!" The princess asked, not trying to hide her anger towards her sister. However, Melty showed no signs of anger towards her sister. Instead, she only looked at her in the eyes with a calm expression.

"Dear sister, there is no need to show such anger. We are siblings, correct? And like siblings, we must act accordingly as we are the daughters of the king of Melromarc. I hope you don't think that because you're the Spear Hero's ally with your privileges, that you can cover up your mess while the damages have already been done, right? Spear Hero, while I know that you have your reasons to hate the Shield Hero, but should that truly be justified by attacking in a civil place where others can be harmed? As a proper Hero, you should be setting aside your differences and work together as a team." Wow… I didn't think she would just attack the two with just her words.

"So you're telling me that Jaune is in the right! For setting aside his partner as a slave, he's in the right?!" Moving away from Raphtalia, he was focused on Melty now.

"...As much as we all have reasons to fight, we all must come to the realization that this world is not perfect. As the world is never perfect, so are the people. Tell me, Spear Hero, is Jaune truly the only person that you know that would own a slave?" That's right… while I'm ashamed for what I've done, there are many others that own slaves. And for Raphtalia… there are not that many people out there who are as kind like me…

"Why… why should that matter?! He's a Hero, isn't he?! He shouldn't even have slaves in his party! That's not Hero material at all!"

"...Truly, it is a shame for what has come to this kingdom. I see your concern of worry for slaves, Spear Hero, and I will be sure to discuss with my mother and father about the situation with slavery. However, while I cannot support his decision to enslaving a Demi-Human, I'm sure there has to be a reason as to why he enslaved her, correct? I am not in any way in any position to know why he did that, but please know this: does Raphtalia really seem like the person to just allow something like that to happen to her?" Upon hearing this, Motoyasu gulped nervously. Raphtalia, who lowered her blade, walked over to me and wrapped her hand around mine. Was… this really necessary? I don't hate this… but… this is so embarrassing!

"...What?"

"I'm asking you if you think Raphtalia is the type of person to allow something bad to come of her. If she didn't want to become his slave, then wouldn't she have protected herself from him? She looks pretty capable of defending herself from someone who only has a shield, yet, here they are right now with Raphtalia being the Shield Hero's slave. How about we ask Raphtalia if she's okay being his slave, shall we?" Turning to Raphtalia, we could see the calmness in her eyes. In this situation, she showed no signs of being upset like her sister and father. If it was her mother who taught her to be like this… then I should be grateful. She… truly acts like a rightful princess, doesn't she?

"Raphtalia, have you been, at any point, forced to become a slave?" To her question, Raphtalia only shook her head.

"No. I was fully prepared to become his slave the moment the idea came to mind. We heard about… the potential risks of Demi-Humans being free, so Mr. Jaune came up with the idea. He was reluctant to do so, but _I _was the one who wanted him to do it because… I trust him. Even while being his slave, nothing has changed throughout our lives. As long as I can be with him, then I don't care what kind of status I have." Clenching my hand, she was trying to make it look it like she was the one who wanted the slave crest. While some of it was true, it was, in fact, _me,_ who wanted to put the crest on her because I was worried about the potential risk of her being taken away.

"I see. Based on your response, I don't need to ask if you are happy with your life as his slave. There you have it, Spear Hero. Raphtalia is happy with her life being as the Shield Hero's slave. Is there something wrong with someone's decision? Or… is it perhaps _you _who doesn't understand what it takes to be a Hero?" Motoyasu had flinched hard when she said that. What does she mean when she says that?

"How dare you say that to Lord Motoyasu? How would you know what it means to be a Hero…_ sister_?" While the princess had addressed her sister like that, Melty didn't seem fazed by her sister's rudeness.

"Well, for one, a Hero wouldn't be attacking someone in a public area. Two, I know that a Hero… wouldn't be listening to his partner as if _they _were the person in charge. That is not a Hero, sister, that is only a follower. A follower under _you _of all people…" The princess only clicked her tongue after she was done talking, while Motoyasu was busy being in his own world while his eyes were widened.

"Follower? I am merely doing my job as his aid!"

"Is that so? So being his aid allows him to fight in a public place where he can endanger the very people he was supposed to protect?" Honestly, how can she speak so calmly while speaking to her older sister like that?

"You dare defy your older sister, Melty?" With the glare she was sending at Melty, I could tell that they DO NOT like each other. Well, I did speak with Melty about their relationship with one another, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised.

"Do not forget who is in charge, dear sister. If I must, I _will _tell mother about this…" Clicking her tongue again, she walked away with her soldiers right behind her. As for Motoyasu, I could only see him looking at us before directing his attention to me and Raphtalia's hands. With nothing else to say, he walked away with the princess. Melty, who was done speaking to them, turned to us.

"Now, Sir Shield Hero, I think it will be best if we discussed your situation more privately." Looking down at us, I noticed that her eyes directed towards the soldiers that were with her. Oh, I get it! If she speaks to me like she did yesterday, then the view they already have on her will change… for the worse. Especially when she acted a bit… un-princess like yesterday...

"Understood, then. If I may suggest, would it be okay if I choose the place we could talk more privately?" When she nodded her head, I could only smile. I know just the place where we can discuss our 'problems'.


	14. Realization?

"Oh, aren't you just a cute little girl!" And the place that I decided to go to… was the magic shop owner's place. While I could've gone to Erhard's shop, I had something to ask about something in particular that's very concerning to me. For now, I'm going to have to speak with Melty and have her leave before I speak to the lady…

"Teehee~! I'm cute!" While the shop lady and Filo spoke to each other at the counter, Raphtalia, Melty, and I decided to sit down and talk at a table that was a little bit far away from them.

"Sir Shield Hero… please reconsider the thought of speaking with my father." As she folded her hands to look at me, I could see a bit of determination in her eyes. She's going straight to the point…

"...I told you, Melty, that I won't speak to him. He's done enough to allow himself to be on my "Not To Trust List"." Yeah, I kind of made that up, but it was true that I can no longer trust him. He had the choice of not doing whatever he wanted with me, but nonetheless, he chose poorly. Everyone has a choice; the choices of doing something right and wrong… he chose to do something wrong… which was right for his people.

"Is there really no other way of convincing you...? This is not the time of fighting with another, Shield Hero…" For some reason, Melty looks sad. I agree with her on her thoughts, but… forgiveness is no longer a choice for me. This was a choice that I decided when I almost lost Raphtalia, the only source of comfort in this world. Well, not only her, but Filo as well. The king made his choice… so I made mine.

"...No. Melty, if you or your mother knew of what happened between the two of us… would you even forgive your father? For he's done to me, for what he's done to Demi-Humans… for what he's done to his own country, would you still find a way to forgive him?" Metly didn't respond vocally. She only responded by putting her head down. It's normal for a daughter to love their father. However, there's no reason why you should be ignorant for what lies true between the decisions of the king and his people. No one should ever become ignorant.

"**But aren't you ignorant?" **Closing my eyes, I could feel… no I can hear "something" speaking to me. It wasn' No one… should be ignorant of what lies true of themselves. I'm… not ignorant…

But could ignorance create something else entirely…?

"Mr. Jaune… are you okay?" Turning to Raphtalia, I could see that she has a nervous look on her face. Her concern was clearly noticed on her face.

"Huh? Why wouldn't I be?" As she was sitting next to me, I felt her hand go over mine. The look of concern had quickly turned into a look of sadness.

"Your… hand, Mr. Jaune. You've been scratching the table…" What? Looking at the table, I could see the marks of table that showed that I was indeed scratching the table… but why? When was I even scratching the table to begin with? Hearing a sigh from Melty, I turned to see what else she had to say to me.

"...The moment I heard something was going wrong with the relation of the Shield Hero and the king, I couldn't help but hope that this was a situation that I could easily fix… but that doesn't seem to be the case, anymore. I've… read stories of the previous Heroes who's been fighting for the world because of the responsibility that had been bestowed upon them. However... I never thought I would experience conflict between a Hero and the king, let alone with other Heroes as well. This… shouldn't be happening, Sir Shield Hero. Surely, you would've thought that this was wrong, yes? This is your chance to hopefully break that conflict-"

"Melty… the moment the people of town noticed that I was the Shield Hero, all I ever got was disrespect. Because of the king and the princess, all I ever got was hatred towards me. Made me think I was useless, made me think that I was pathetic, made me think that all was going to happen to me… was pain. They made everyone think that Raphtalia, a Demi-Human child at that time, was an enemy of the kingdom by framing her for something that I've done! And all I did was protect the both of us from an ambush! They threatened to kill her in front of me, Melty! At that point of time, what would you want me to do, Melty?! Say that they were wrong so they would kill Raphtalia regardless of what I said?! No, I had to tell them that it was me, Melty! I had to lie and say that I attacked the soldier, excluding the fact that I protected her! If you read stories about the previous Heroes, then why don't you tell me if the other Shield Heroes experienced the same kind of treatment _I _did!" As I accidentally raised my voice at her, she flinched hard. Noticing this, I pinched the bridge of my nose.

"Master, don't yell at Mel-Mel!" Feeling a tug on my sleeve, I looked to see Filo pouting. Not only was it Filo trying to stop me, Raphtalia was squeezing my hand in desperation. Sighing, I patted her head and looked back at Melty. As I saw her begin to open her mouth, the door to the shop opened to reveal a soldier.

"Princess, it is time for us to depart. The king requires your immediate presence." After saying that, the soldier closed the door. "Princess"? If anything, what he should have said was "Lady Melty". For what reason did they have to address royalty without saying their name? Something… something isn't right, here.

"...I must excuse myself for today, Sir Shield Hero. If it isn't any trouble, I would like to speak with you again sometime. Farewell for today, everyone." After getting up, she waved goodbye to Filo and left the shop. Great, because of me, she sounds depressed. Why… am I such an idiot?

"Why did you have to be so mean to Mel-Mel, Master?!" As Filo was already upset with how sad Melty looked, she started to tug on my sleeve even harder. What a day this is…

"Calm down, Filo. Mr. Jaune doesn't hate Melty; he's only… having some trouble with something internally. I'm sure he'll apologize when we meet again, Filo." Raphtalia started to pat Filo's head to soothe her disappointment.

"...Okay. But Master has to promise to apologize!"

"Okay, Filo, I promise that I will apologize to Melty when I get the chance. For now, I have to speak with the owner, okay?" Walking away from them, I walked to the counter to discuss the reason why I came here. Upon going to the counter, she smiled.

"It's a pleasure to see you again, Shield Hero. Is there anything that you need?" She asked.

"Well, it's not like I'm trying to buy something from you, I was planning to… gain some information from you about things that interest me." Raising an eyebrow, she looked confused. I'm guessing there's not that many people who come to her shop and ask her for some information.

"Information? What kind of information do you need to know? And please, try to make it within my range of expertise." Okay, time to go with the first thing I have in mind. However, I'm afraid that she might not know if the other thing I have in mind is possible...

"...What's this whole class-up thing? Ever since I reached level 40, I haven't been able to level up anymore. Does this class-up thing have to do with my level?"

"I do not mean to say this as a means to insult you, but I must say that I expected you to not know of this information," Ouch, I still felt that one. "Because of your reputation, it makes sense that no one could've told you what it meant. Basically, a Class-Up or rather, Class Upgrades is an upgrade that increases your level cap. For that to be done, you must go to the hourglass." The hourglass, huh? That place again? Well, I can forget about the Class-Upgrades because I'm sure for a fact that my presence would be hated there.

"Thanks, I'll be sure to go there when I have the time. Now… I have something to ask that might… be out of your field of expertise," Noticing the shift my tone, she eyes hardened a bit. "As you know already, I am from a different world. I come from a world where… monsters exist as well. However, these monsters aren't like any of the monsters that are seen in this world. Attracted by Human emotions of rage and sadness, they won't stop until everything they see is destroyed. Now, it might seem impossible to you… but while we were on our journey in that cave… that black creature that you saw… was one of the monsters that came from my world: Grimm." In response, she placed her hands on the counter and kept her eyes fixated on me.

"...A creature from another world… or to be factual, your world, correct? That… hm, I don't know how any of that could be possible. Yes, I remember the black creature. Other than that, I also remember that creature disappearing into thin air. How could creatures from another world start to suddenly appear in this world? Unless… they were summoned." Summoned? I know that the magicians here was able to summon us from our respective worlds, but that doesn't make any sense; they said that they weren't able to send us back to our worlds until the Waves were stopped. Were they… lying to us? That shouldn't be unexpected, but then again… why would they even lie about that? If they hated me so much, then they could've sent me back to my world without any problems… unless they kept me here so they could force me to suffer…

"Could it be the same as the summoning that those magicians had done when they summoned the Heroes?"

"That's not likely, Shield Hero. I'm sure that in order to summon one Hero from another world, it would take at least a few magicians. For them to summon all the Heroes into one place… I won't be surprised that it would take a huge amount of magicians to summon all four of them. We've seen that even if they are able to come into this world, they disappear into thin air… something about that doesn't seem to make sense. If they were summoned here, then that would mean that they would have their entire body, and soul sent along with them. The fact that all of the Heroes exist here is the logic behind that reasoning. However… why couldn't the creatures maintain their existence in this world? This is… something that I must research, Sir Shield Hero. Could you come back in a few days?" So, nothing, huh? Great, there isn't anything that can give me a clue as to why or even how they were able to appear here.

"Okay, I'll leave it to you, then."

* * *

And so, 3 days had been since then. During that time, I decided to go and venture out to find some villages nearby the town that needed some help so we could earn some money. Well, of course, I didn't make the payment _too_ much. The villagers agreed with the minimum payment of a few silvers were enough, so that's okay. Not only did I have to pay Erhard back, but I might have to pay that slave merchant as well! Okay, I didn't want to go to Erhard's shop because I don't think I have enough money to pay for the upgrades that he's given us. For sure, now that we earned some more money, we can at least pay for the upgrades that he's done for us. Other than that… yeah, nothing bad has happened to us. We have… the Wave coming upon us in a few hours, so it's probably good that we go back to the lady and see if she found anything.

"Pardon the intrusion! Did you-what is going on here?" Upon opening the door to the shop, all I could see was a bunch of books scattered on the floor. Sitting on a chair at the table was the lady who owned the shop. I'm just going to guess it… she found nothing.

"Oh, Shield Hero! What a pleasant surprise to see you here?! Now, what can I do for you?!" When she greeted us, she looked ecstatic to see us.

"Is… everything okay?" Raphtalia asked, concerned if the lady was okay or not. We have like 20 minutes before the Wave starts, so we should probably hurry and get some information from her.

"Huh? Why, of course I'm fine! I've been researching summoning magic for the past few days, and I have yet to find anything! Okay, I'm not fine…" Closing the book that she was reading in her hands, she got up and went behind her counter. Navigating through… the books that were scattered on the floor, we finally found ourselves at the counter. As she was slouching with her hands on her cheeks and elbows on the counter, she sighed.

"So… you don't have anything new that could help us?" Well, even if I know about the information, what could I do with it? Will I try to use that information to find a way back home? But… should I even do that? Abandon this world and… go on with my own life?

"...Nothing. I haven't found a single thing about summoning creatures from another world. Based on all of the many books that I read, I can only conduct theories, but in the end of things, they are only theories. In my mind, I only have one so far." A theory, huh? Well, it might not mean that much, but it can help us a bit. "Let's create a theory into a form of a question: if someone was summoned from another world, could there be any drawbacks?"

"Drawbacks? As in… consequences?" Raphtalia asked, wanting to know if her idea of drawbacks is correct or not.

"Almost, but not exactly. The drawbacks could be either be good or bad, but we might not know it. Let's take your world for example, Shield Hero. While you came from another world, only _you _ were brought here. However, what if there was some sort of drawback to that? A consequence that shouldn't have happened has happened in the most confusing way possible… a connection between two worlds!" Connection… of our worlds? That… that's… can that really happen?

"Hold on, a connection between this world and my own world? I'm sorry if I make you sound crazy, but that doesn't seem possible! I mean, I left my world behind with no way back! There shouldn't be any way possible that shows that this world and my own are-"

Wait. No… a connection between my world and theirs? Surely, that couldn't be possible… but there's one piece of evidence that explains… everything…

No. The only piece of evidence… was already found… by myself.

I… already experienced it…

Not only myself, but Raphtalia as well…

"The three-headed dog… was there in that cave…! Before I-I mean we got summoned here, we encountered a three-headed dog in a cave!" Staring at Raphtalia, her eyes widened in shock when she remembered the three-headed dog that had gotten mentioned.

"Three-headed dog? You mean the Cerberus?! Are you sure that you've seen the Cerberus?! I thought you said that the only creatures that you've encountered in your world was the black creatures. How did you manage to encounter the Cerberus?!" That's the question: _how _did we encounter the three-headed dog in the first place?

"I-I'm not wrong! Ever since I was young, the Grimm had been plaguing the world! People become hunters and huntresses for the sole purpose of slaying the Grimm! I don't believe that there has been a single report of a three-headed dog encounter!" Raphtalia stepped forward to speak with the lady. As Filo looked confused about this whole discussion, she only stared and watched us talk in confusion.

"It's true. When Mr. Jaune and I went out to fight against those black creatures, we stumbled upon a cave with a three-headed dog that looked similar to the one I've seen in my village." After Raphtalia said that, the lady turned her focus towards her.

"Wait, village? You are from the Shield Hero's world, correct? But when the Shield Hero is saying that he never encountered the Cerberus until he-wait, something isn't adding up, Shield Hero." Looking back at me, I could see her eyes begin to harden when she realized something.

"What is it?" I asked, already expressing my confusion.

"The First Wave. The First Wave had started in a village that's not too far from here. From some of my relatives, they informed me that the village was a village for Demi-Humans. Unknown to the people of the town, the First Wave had started at that specific village! That village… was named Rurorona Village." Raphtalia moved her head back after she was done talking.

"W-what?! B-But that's the name of my village! The village that I grew up in!" With widening eyes, her voice began to shake from fear.

"If that's true… then you are from this world. But when I try to put two and two together, it doesn't make any sense. You and the Shield Hero are saying that from _his _world, the two of you encountered the Cerberus… which doesn't make any sense. Not only is the Cerberus encounter strange… but how you and the Shield Hero is strange as well." Yeah… it _is _strange. When I first met Raphtalia, she was close to sinking at the docks. How she managed to end up there is beyond me.

"What do you mean? How could my encounter with Mr. Jaune be strange?" Raphtalia sounded like she was rejecting the strangeness that happened between our encounter. Something just… doesn't add up. How did she end up in the docks? How did we meet the three-headed dog? We might not have that much time left, so we have to know!

"If you must know… the First Wave hadn't been won with the death of the Cerberus," My eyes widened when she said that. I'm guessing that Raphtalia wouldn't be hiding her shock as well. "...The First Wave was won with the disappearance of the Cerberus. When soldiers managed to find their way to the village, there were no signs of Cerberus's corpse or anything left of it. Some of the villagers managed to live from the First Wave, but the confusion as to where the Cerberus has ended up making everyone scratch their heads… until I finally know what happened to it…" It… ended up in my world?! How was that even possible?! That would mean that there had to be some sort of summoning that brought it to my world! "But… before I answer, I would like to know how you managed to survive, dear. How did you find yourself in the Shield Hero's world?"

"I… my parents… they… they pushed me off the cliff into a sea of water before the monster was able to kill me. When… when I was about to drown… I… saw something. It was… blue and nothing else but blue. Before I knew what happened… Mr. Jaune saved me by pulling me out of the water."

That… that can't be possible…! Yes, I knew Raphtalia was from this world, but how she managed to do it was out of logical reasoning. Randomly appearing in the water with the light of blue submerging… I pulled Raphtalia out of the water…

...Raphtalia got pushed off the cliff by parents as a means of saving her, she managed to almost drown in the water, she found a blue light in the water and...

And… I met Raphtalia.

Staring at Raphtalia, I could only stare at her with shocked eyes. No, the… Cerberus couldn't have managed to come from my world on its own… it somehow managed to get transported into my world by… Raphtalia?! The… the connection doesn't coincidental! They were both located at the same place and at the same time! There's… it couldn't be true!

"**You're being ignorant! Open your eyes already!" **Voice… no it's familiar. Someone I know, someone that's important to me...

"It's only a theory, but there's nothing that can prove that this theory… could indeed be factual. I'm not saying this to blame your partner for something that was out of her power… but I _must _say this because she has a link to… _something _that might not even from our world! Shield Hero… your partner…"

It's not true… it's not true! I… Raphtalia can't be at fault for this…! Breathe, Jaune, breathe! You… it isn't possible, it isn't possible!

"**Stop it, you fool! Your ignorance is truly pathetic!" **

"Your partner… is the reason why our worlds are being connected. The summoning of the Shield Hero isn't the reason why our worlds has started to connect with one another… it has something to do in relation of summoning your partner back to this world, Shield Hero. Think, Shield Hero. When she got summoned to your world, a world that hasn't known of the existence of the Cerberus, it suddenly appeared. That's not a coincidence, Shield Hero. It might be confusing to say this, but… your partner, by the minute, could somehow be connecting our two worlds into one. I don't know how there could be a way to fix this, but **you need to open your eyes, Jaune." **

I… I… no, not possible…!

I…

"Mr. Jaune!" Falling onto the floor, I couldn't stay awake any longer...

**(A/N) **

**Sorry if this looks like crap.**


	15. Chapter 15

**(A/N) **

**Sorry for the late update. Not only did I want to have a bit of a break from this, I had to deal with exams in college. I hope I can do something next week, but with another exam stamped on my calendar... I can already see myself suffering. **

"Mr. Jaune, please wake up!" Huh? Wha… what happened? Opening my eyes, I could only see the familiar sight of a reddish sky that hovered above me. This… this was a Wave?!

"Raphtalia, what happened?! How… how are we in a Wave?!" This was unfamiliar territory; just by looking around, all I see are the trees that make up a forest. If I remember correctly… I pass out? Yeah, I remember that I just learned that Raphtalia had been the cause of… strange things happening, and I couldn't help it but fall asleep. No… was there someone else in that room with us? It… felt that there someone in that room with us. Other than the magic shop owner, was there someone else there?

"You're alright! Mr. Jaune, don't you remember that you passed out earlier? You were long asleep until we got teleported to the Wave. Since this is a Wave, I had to carry you to someplace else, where I can wake you up. And… here we are." I don't really understand "someplace safe" as we are in the middle of the forest, but if we're still alive, then I just had to trust her word in it. By the sound of it, I don't think I missed that much in the Wave, so it's best for us to just head out.

"Raphtalia, did you see any villages? Was there any other place that needs protection in this forest?" In response, Raphtalia nodded her head.

"Strangely, when we got summoned in the Wave, we got summoned in a village. I tried to wake you up in the village, but you wouldn't wake up. Soon, the monsters started to come, and the villagers had some trouble fighting off monsters, so I kept you hidden for a while, only to find… um," Looking at my health, I noticed that it was in the yellow. By that, I could already tell what happened. "I'm sorry, Mr. Jaune! I didn't mean for you to get hurt!" She bowed her head apologetically, only for me to pat her head.

"It's fine, as long as we're alright, then it's fine. Judging by how we're here, you managed to get me out of my… predicament?" With Raphtalia's tails slowly starting to wag a bit, she nodded her head.

"Well, after I managed to protect you from monsters, soldiers started to appear, wanting to protect the village. At first, I didn't believe them, but, for all that's worth, I had to take my chances of taking you away while they held them off. I'm… sorry I couldn't stay to protect the village, Mr. Jaune." She still wanted to protect the village, even if I was sitting out? Raphtalia… you're such a strong-willed girl.

"It's fine, Raphtalia. Wait, where's Filo?" Looking around, I didn't see Filo anywhere. Did she decide to just run off and-"

"Master~!" Hearing a loud cry from my Boarbatusk ears, I looked to the direction as to where the voice came from, which was right behind us. And… it was Filo?! How did she get separated from us to begin with? And… why is she running with tears in her eyes straight at-Filo!

"Master~! Where did you and Raphtalia go~?! We got teleported, and I didn't find you guys anywhere~!" After being tackled by the giant Filolial, she started to cry over me. I would like to figure out how we got separated, but… I have a giant Filolial on my body!

"Filo, you have to get off of him! You're crushing him!" Raphtalia exclaimed in a panicked voice.

"Master~! I'm sorry~!" Getting off of me, I'm generally surprised that the lower part of my body isn't flat. Standing back up, I dusted off the dust off my jacket.

"Okay… Filo, please, never do that again. For now, let's not worry about how we got separated. If there are soldiers fighting in the nearby village, then, we should hurry and fight the Wave's boss! We have no time to waste!" Raphtalia and Filo nodded their heads, but Filo wiped the tears out of her eyes beforehand.

"Filo, let's get a move on!" With Raphtalia and I hopped onto Filo's back, Filo started to move. It just strikes me odd; how did we manage to get separated from Filo? And where exactly did Filo end up at? No, that's not important right now. For now, our main focus should be the Wave's boss. If the other Heroes are there, then… it could either be a good or a bad thing.

* * *

"Master, I see the person with the bow!" Looking ahead, I could see Itsuki shooting off… are those snake heads on a flying boat?! What kind of boat had snakes at the front of it?! Wait… those aren't snakes, those are skeleton heads! After reaching him, along with his teammates, Filo stopped.

"Itsuki, are the others on the ship?" After drawing his attention away from the skull heads, he looked at me with a surprised look.

"You… nevermind, yeah, they're on the boat, but I don't know what they're doing! I don't understand what's taking them so long to kill the boss!" Shooting another arrow, it hit one of the boats' heads, only for it to not do any damage to it. Clicking his tongue, he started to get ready to shoot another arrow.

"What, you think that they're arguing about something up there?" I asked him. As it was clearly a joke, Itsuki showed no signs of taking a small laugh. Instead, he had his glare towards the ship.

"Knowing them, probably. I wouldn't be surprised if they're up there fighting each other." He said while releasing another arrow. Ren and Motoyasu are up there… this might be a problem then.

"Do you need a ride up there?" I asked him, only from him to lower his bow and look at me with a surprised look again.

"You're… asking me to come with you?" I nodded my head in response.

"There's only enough space for one more person on Filo's back, so I decided for it to be you. Besides, if you think about it, if all of us are there, then we could have an advantage against the boss! We're just going to have to-"

"Sorry, but I'd rather stay down here and give ground support." With the sudden cutoff, I could only stare at him with a shocked look. I don't care if they didn't like me, if we're fighting against the boss together, then we have the upper hand against them. But, if he wants to help with ground support, then that's fine. I can't find myself changing his mind.

"Okay then, just be careful, alright?" He didn't say anything after that, he only continued to maintain his focus on the ship. Just with the knowledge that I almost killed them once before, I couldn't help but feel disappointed with myself. If I had managed to kill off even one of the Heroes… then the Waves might be undefeatable.

Landing on the ship after Filo flew up to it, I was able to see Ren and Motoyasu fighting off against two enemies: a pirate, and one of those skull heads. Both of them looked exhausted, but I shrugged that off. With how sluggish they're fighting, it looked like they were fighting these things for a long time. But… why? Shouldn't they be able to take these guys on with no problem?

"Damn it, there's no end to these damn things! Motoyasu, could you stop focusing on that fauder and take down this skeleton?! The Soul Eater won't spawn unless we defeat this-urgh!" Blocking a blunt attack from the skeleton captain, Ren pushed the skeleton away from him and slashed through it like it was nothing. As the skeleton faded away for only a second, it spawned right in front of him again.

"What?! Didn't you hear me when I said that the Kraken needs to be defeated?! You're wasting your time with that weakling, so help _me _out with this thing!" The skeleton captain can respawn after being defeated… and Motoyasu is having trouble with those snake head things. Hm, it looks like the boss might not appear if one of these things isn't defeated. But, that's only a guess on their part, not mine.

"Guys, instead of arguing, how about we _all _work together to bring out this boss?" I suggested, bringing forth all attention towards me. Hey, there's nothing wrong with I just said, but turning away from our enemies is just…-

"Jaune?! What, decided to not help out some village now?" Motoyasu said with a disappointing tone.

"Is there something wrong protecting a village, Motoyasu? Because for us, our mission is to protect everyone from the Waves. This is the boss area, and this is where we end the Wave. Instead of fighting against one another, how about we just-"

"What, trying to have everyone "work" together so you don't have to do anything? Sorry, but we're no slaves, especially not some Demi-Human." Must something smart come from Motoyasu's side of the ship? And here I thought the monsters were more annoying than Malty's yapping.

"Excuse me?! Mr. Jaune does not just sit around and have _anyone _do work for him! Of course, you wouldn't know because you're busy toppling against the Spear Hero!" Well, Raphtalia could handle this. Just having her insult Malty is enough to bring a smile to my-wait, we shouldn't be arguing!"

"What did you say, Demi-Human?! You dare insult-"

"Okay, that's enough! Let's stop wasting time before more monsters start to come!" Before anyone could say anything, I heard something behind me move. "Rope Shield!" Transforming my Legendary Shield into the Rope Shield, I blocked the skeleton's attack behind me. "Air Strike Shield!" Using Air Strike Shield, I sent the green holographic-like shield into the skeleton's stomach, causing him to back up from the attack.

"Look, we don't have any time for any of this! Motoyasu! Ren! All three of us are Heroes, so we should just act like them! Bickering against one another isn't make _any_ monster disappear in front of you!" As the skeleton charged back towards me, I blocked its attack again, this time, using my Rope ability, I wrapped the rope around the skeleton's sword and pulled it, causing the skeleton to drop the sword. Punching it away from me, it fell to the ground. "Whether you take out either one, just fight! People and our own lives are at stake here! So stop messing around and just fight!" Why was everyone staring at me dumbfounded? We have to fight here!

"Who died and made you the leader?! As I was just saying, if we take out the Kraken, then the boss comes out! There are no other options than that!" Motoyasu stepped up.

"Yeah, and that's not getting us anywhere! We have to defeat the skeleton a set number of times so the boss could spawn!" Ren stepped up also. Okay, I'm seriously having enough of them acting like this. These are the Heroes that people adore other than the Shield Hero, huh? Heroes that just bicker and bicker until they figure out which one is right? Turning towards the skeleton captain, I find myself staring at its face.

Wait… what's going on? Why was its eyes glowing purple like that? And… why do I continue to look at them?

As second passed, my head was being forced downwards, looking down at the skeleton's feet. At its shadow, I could see something ominous with a smile.

"**Hmph. The darkness is our enemy and friend. You are merely the opposite; the attraction of it. As if something like that shadow would fool my eyes." **Who… who is talking to me? Why… do they sound familiar? It's… almost sounding like-no, that couldn't be. I must be imagining things, that's all. Whatever that thing that is at the skeleton's feet has something to do with it respawning.

"Raphtalia, attack that skeleton's shadow! There's something about that skeleton we don't know about!" Nodding her head, with her unsheathed sword, she rushed at the skeleton, swinging her sword down at the skeleton's feet. Because of that, purple-like clouds started to erupt from the skeleton's feet. Since it didn't have its weapon, it wouldn't put up that much of a fight, huh?

"Ren, you too! Attack the Kraken's shadow!"Raising his sword, as one of the Kraken's heads was distracted, Ren lowered his sword to stab its shadow.

"I could've done that without you ordering me." Well, you did it, so it doesn't matter what you say anymore…

As the clouds started to lift towards the sky, it started to form into… the boss! But… that thing's huge! You mean to tell me that thing was hiding as a shadow behind those other monsters?! Its cloud-like appearance that almost looks like a shark with sharp teeth stared down at us with glee. This thing… was waiting for us! He toyed with the other Heroes in its own gain!

Opening its mouth, a green orb started to form within its mouth. Whatever it's doing, we can't allow ourselves to get hit by that! "Filo, do whatever you can to stop it from launching that attack!"

"Okay~! Here I go~!" Flying into the air, Filo kicked the boss at its chin, causing the monster to close its mouth on its own green orb. "How did you like that?! You aren't so tough, are you?! High-Quick!" As she disappeared from where she once was, Filo reappeared over the boss, kicking its head, only to disappear again. She kept doing this for a while, before coming back to the ground. Good thing we learned some more magic before speaking to the magic shop owner, huh?

"Master, nothing's hurting it!" Filo complained. Nothing, huh? Hopefully, that doesn't mean that we're too weak to even lay a scratch on it. There has to be some sort of weakness it has.

"Thunder-bolt Slash!"

"Thunder Arrow!"

"Lightning Spear!" The attacks that the Heroes did manage to connect with it, only to soon reveal that it didn't have a scratch on it. Seriously?! Even they are weak to fight this thing?!

If our attacks aren't working… then how are we supposed to defeat this thing? There has to be some sort of weakness to it! Everything has to have a weakness! It's tail? No, nothing about its tail shows any signs of weakness. How long have we been here? Surely, if this carries on, the villagers in that village might fall soon! The villagers as well! There… has to be something that we're not seeing here! More monsters are going to spawn if we keep stalling like this!

In… order to fight this thing with some sort of ground… we're going to have to fight with something strong. _Someone _strong. Looking towards Raphtalia, I could see her strong-willed eyes glaring at the enemy above us.

As it opened its mouth again, it readied up another one of those green orbs.

This… was truly unsettling. We don't have much time… we have to take it out… and NOW!

"Raphtalia," Turning towards me, her eyes grew softer. "You know as much as I do that if we continue to linger here doing nothing, then hope is going to be lost in the people."

"I understand that, but we just have to-" I raised my hand in a way for her to stop talking.

"Raphtalia… I'm out of ideas. And when I'm out of ideas… I start to act stupid, you hear me? If… no one here can lay a scratch on this thing… then I have no other choice but to try and one-up it." Raphtalia's eyes widened.

"Mr. Jaune, you're planning on-" I nodded my head in response. Looking up at the boss, it was about to launch its attack. I… I can live with the hatred being thrown at me, I can live with the fact that everyone hates me, but… there's one thing I can't live with…

"I refuse to let my comrades die, Raphtalia. Whether they hate me or not, I have to fight to protect everyone. That's my own duty with the shield. I… If something happens, just… stay away from me, okay?"

"But what if you lose control over yourself like before?! You… would attack anyone and everyone with the intent of killing them, Mr. Jaune. I… can't afford to lose you to your own self! You… we can defeat this thing together! We just have to-"

"Raphtalia, there's no more time. I'm the only hope we've got to stand a chance against this thing. I'll… try to control myself, I promise." She was reluctant to let me do anything. For her safety, for Filo's safety, for everyone's lives that are on the line right now, I have to fight.

"Master, is something wrong?" Filo asked while tilting her head a bit.

"No. Nothing's wrong, Filo. I… I'm going to be away for a bit, okay?"

"Away? What do you mean by that?" Looking up at the boss, it was polite enough to charge its attack to the fullest, huh?

"Filo, take care of Raphtalia for me, okay?" Filo stared at Raphtalia, only to not get a response from her.

"Master, I don't understand. What's going to happen to-"

"Filo, please, get away from me. I… just protect Raphtalia, okay?"

"If only..." Hearing Raphtalia speak, I turned my head towards her. With the bangs of her hair covering her face, I couldn't see her eyes. "Why must you continue to put yourself in danger, Mr. Jaune? You… continue to want to help everyone, but all you're doing is hurting yourself during that time. Why… why must you always want to suffer by yourself? We… want to help as well, Mr. Jaune! We can-"

"I know you can Raphtalia. But… if we continue as we are now, then we won't be able to stop the Wave in time. It's an all-or-nothing option for me, Raphtalia."

"Are you… saying that we're not strong enough, Mr. Jaune? Because if that's the case, then-"

"It has nothing to do with you two being weak. This is something that I must do, Raphtalia. If no one can, then, who will? Activate-" Before I had the chance to do anything, flashes of light brushed past my face; however, with the sudden light, the force of wind pushed me back.

Whatever it was… it was strong.


	16. Chapter 16

(A/N)

...Well, I'm still alive and caring about this story, if everyone is asking. The time that I spent off of this story has truly… woke me up, if I should say. Okay, I should just… come out of the shadows and just… talk about how I'm really feeling. Right now, no, let me go back a little. Before, my time to just… write and think of ideas for fanfiction happened in the time of high school. I loved writing and writing for many hours for fanfiction because I was truly becoming close to what I wanted to do in life: writing(?) The time that I've spent on this laptop of mine, writing the dumbest ideas come to be, and eventually have others call this story a… successful story of some sort… made me afraid. It made me afraid so much to the point where I don't know where I'm going anymore. I'm happy that this story is good to you all, I'm happy that I'm able to come up with these brilliant stupid ideas for this story… but something just feels missing. Where I'm thinking of writing a fanfiction or update a story on fanfiction, the fear just takes over. I've spent months on this site, posting stories and chapters to this site… and yet, I'm scared? I'm scared of posting again? I'm scared… of updating one of my most beautiful stories?

I'm confused. I'm confused and lost, that I don't even know what I'm doing anymore. I'm writing a note for others online so that I could eventually be degraded on the internet for God's sake, look at me! But then again, I just need to realize that this is the internet, and that's all it is. Nonone here knows me. You haven't talked to me in real life, and I'm sure that you can judge me all you want, but I can only say that I'm human. When I get bored, I get bored. When I get tired, I get tired. I'm the most human thing that everyone sees in other humans. So, what's the problem of me posting my real problems? I don't know.

But… I just want to come clear to everyone now. I'm confused and happy at the same time. Everyone here(okay, maybe not the jerks) had made some part of this happiness that I'm feeling. For everyone who had helped me create this story with your words, I'm truly grateful. College had some part of what I'm trying to do with my life as well. When I started college, something in my head snapped that made me want to become an artist. And by the time I found myself improving on something that I had sort of given up on a long time ago… I noticed that I've left everyone on here behind. I didn't even know how to continue this story until today. And before… I was bored of this story. Not just this one, but all of my other stories. The others updates and creations were to just help me get back into the groove of things, but sadly, something isn't working. My heart isn't here anymore, it's on improving my art. But, for a good thing, I think I should try to come back to this story. I need to do… something to help me get back into writing. But, first, I just want to say that I'm thinking of creating my own story. Like… no fanfiction this time. And… that will be addressed another time.

In short, maybe it's writer's block.

And finals are coming up, but just know that I'm coming back… as soon as this laptop charges.

Have fun reading everyone.

The boss of this Wave had been attacked in a single second. Pierced by that magic from earlier, the boss fell to the ground; lifeless and deceased. At this point, everyone had stopped moving. We were all shocked at the fact that boss that had managed to drag out this long of a fight, had been defeated with just a few attacks.

Or could that be considered as only one attack?

"My, what a degrading sight to see." Startled, I looked ahead, noticing a mysterious woman standing in front of us with a fan to her mouth. Was she… always there? I didn't even notice her…

"You… were the one who killed the boss, right? If you are the person who did it, then thanks for the help." Looking at her, I could tell that she looked off. From her calm expression to her robe attire… I could tell that something was wrong. I didn't need to notice my spine shivering a bit to notice that she could possibly be our enemy.

"Mhm, there's no need for the gratefulness, it only tells me how useless the Four Cardinal Heroes are. So please, spare me the words." To that, my body tensed up. I knew it; this woman might not be a friendly person after all.

"Useless?! What the hell are you talking about, lady?!" Motoyasu yelled, angered at the insult she made. Not only him, but Ren and Itsuki were visibly upset as well. For me, I could only stand there with an unsure expression. The Grimm features of my body is telling me to run away, but I… can't. I can't afford to leave the other Heroes to this dangerous foe.

"Not only are you useless, but you have trouble hearing as well? Must I continue to talk about how disappointed I am to see the Heroes struggling against such a pitiful enemy? Or… shall we begin fighting?" And just like that, Motoyasu stepped forward.

"If you think you're strong enough to take us on, then-"

"May I ask why you feel as though you need to fight us?" Hearing that from me had caused her to raise a brow at me. I had managed to stop Motoyasu from speaking any more than that. He's seen what she could do, so why is he acting like a tough guy? If we were having trouble with the boss, where does he think we stand compared to her?

"You're asking me why? Should there be any reason to explain to you why we must fight? You four are the Heroes of this world. Therefore, enemies are looming around every corner, so you must be on your guard, Shield Hero."

"But still, even if you want to fight us, why save us from the boss? You could've made your job a whole lot easier." True, she did save us, but for what reason? To see where she stands above the Heroes?

"You make an excellent point, Shield Hero. However, you must understand that it must be me who will do the killing." Killing?! We've come to part of killing now?! Just what kind of grudge does she have against us?!

"Heh, it seems that _you _can't hear well, lady. Like I said, you really think you'll be able to take us? The three of us are more than capable enough to take you down!" Saying that, Motoyasu's spear was covered in light.

"Meteor Thrust!"

"Meteor Slash!"

"Meteor Shot!" All three of them made their attacks, each willing enough to try to kill the lady in front of us.

And then, the explosion came when their attacks went into contact. Surely… that wouldn't be enough to kill her, right? Insults are… aggravating at most, but to just kill someone because they insulted you isn't a good enough reason to do such a thing.

"Hmph! And to think you three call yourself Heroes!" With a single swipe, the dust that surrounded her became nothing. Taking three attacks from us… and not getting a single scratch! How strong is this woman to just tank attacks like that?!

"What?!" Itsuki shows his disbelief.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Motoyasu grips his spear angrily.

"Tch!" And Ren clicked his tongue.

This was not looking good!

"Care to try again? Or… should I perhaps allow the Shield Hero to have a chance at harming me?" She should know that a shield wouldn't do much damage to her, so why even give me the chance? Or… should I use the Boarbatusk Shield again? It's necessary, but I can't guarantee that I'll be able to control myself.

"Like I'll need that guy's help! He'll only slow us down! Take this!" Insulting while thrusting his spear out, he went out for an attack on the woman. And sadly, for an attack like that, she easily brushed passed him. And slow them down?! How am I going to-no… just let it go, Jaune.

"Oh? It seems that you Heroes have a dislike for the Shield Hero? Hm, I must say that's sad, but not any of my business. What's important…" Suddenly, her fans became the color of yellow light. "Is the death of you Heroes!" Giving out attacks that I couldn't even see, the other Heroes and their partners went down without giving that much of a fight. I… knew that we wouldn't be enough for her… but I didn't think that she could take us out so fast!

"And for you, Shield Hero." When she looked at me in the eye, I could tell that she was ready to take me down without any effort. But something was wrong. Why was it that she was so close to my face? "What can you do?" And just like that, I was sent backwards by some invisible force.

"Mr. Jaune!" While I was still able to stand while skidding backwards, I was able to see Raphtalia already unsheathing her sword to attack her. Raising her sword, she attacked the woman, only for her to stop suddenly.

"Raphtalia!" Noticing the reason why she stopped, I was able to see the blade of the woman's fan up to her neck. She was quick enough to do that?!

"Now, did you really think an attack as slow as that would reach me?" She smiled while taunting. However, Raphtalia strangely smiled even when she looked nervous.

"Of course not. I was only the bait." She was… bait? Raphtalia couldn't have possibly sent herself like that without thinking, but why act as bait?!

"High Quick!" Hearing Filo cast her self-casting magic, she quickly disappeared, only reappearing to the side of the woman. Now, with her feet encased with yellow light, she started to attack her with a barrage of attacks that even I couldn't see.

"Bait, you say? I must say, eight attacks in such a succession is truly admirable. It's a shame that a bird could surprise me to an extent." With Raphtalia and Filo moving away from her, we had some time to think of… something. She's… unbeatable if I don't do anything! But… I'm afraid of losing myself again! Even when she had lowered her guard a bit, she sounded disinterested! Wait, did she not take any damage from that?! Looking closer, I could see that one of her fans were… emitting smoke?! She… was able to keep up with Filo's speed?!

"I would like to get to the main course, Shield Hero. Stop sending your servants and attack me!" To that sentence, I found myself stepping back a bit. I don't have enough time to think of something, and I don't think any one of my attacks would be able to do anything!

"Hm? Jaune-if I heard that correctly from your servant, whatever is the reason for you to step away? Surely, you don't plan on dying without a fight, correct?"

"...Why are you coming after us? If you have some grudge against us, then-"

"Why are you insisting that I have some sort of grudge? The only thing that you need to know is that my name is Glass, and that will be the only thing you will ever hear!" With speed I couldn't track, her fans had made wind that was enough to blow all of us back. "Attack already! I'm here for the heads of the Heroes, but if I must use other methods, then I will!" Directing her attention at Raphtalia, she was wounding up for an attack, which I was easily able to see.

"Raphtalia, behind me!" Quickly running in front of her, I raised the Chimera Viper Shield, ready to block the attacks directed at her.

"Reverse Four Seasons!" As she released her attack, I was able to see multiple light attacks heading towards my direction. I'm not using the right shield to block an attack like that! And… I won't be able to protect Raphtalia from all of those attacks!

And so, I pushed Raphtalia out of the way.

"Gaaaagh!" As the attacks were connecting, I was feeling a ton of pain. Even when I'm blocking a majority of her attacks, some of them were attacking me from behind!

"Mr. Jaune!" As the attacks stopped, I felt worn out. My health was now in yellow. I could only thank the shield's defense and my own aura for that. She… was strong enough to bypass the shield's defense and my own aura? How… strong was this woman?!

"Hm? And I was so sure that would've been enough to take you down, Jaune. I must say that you're one tough guy to crack. I don't know how you were able to take all of those attacks with so little damage, but I must commend you for your bravery of taking those attacks for your servant."

"Don't… call her a servant! None of my companions are servants! Boarbatusk Shield!" As the Chimera Viper Shield turned into the Boarbatusk Shield, the weight of the shield was heavy. It wasn't like that before. Am I… afraid?

"My, what a beast-like form, Jaune. I hope to see that this mysterious new form might give more of a challenge?" Calm down, Jaune, they are only taunts. I might have some control over this shield, but something… else is in this shield. And it feels hot like a fire.

"Motoyasu. Ren. Itsuki." I looked to them to see that they're struggling to get up. They won't be able to help if they looked that wounded.

"Wh-what… do you want?" He might sound angry, but I can tell that he's hurt. If I asked him for help, then he's going to get killed. And… for the sake of the world, and my own mind, I must have him and everyone else run away.

"I want all of you to get out of here. Take your partners and leave. Being here will only put you all in more danger." Hearing this, I watched the woman named Glass smile at me. She looks confident… but let's see her handle me when I'm like this!

"What?! You're asking us to run away?! And why should we listen to-"

"Enough, Motoyasu. He's right. Compared to him, we don't stand a chance against her. It's best if we just leave." Ren said, trying to convince Motoyasu to run.

"Ren, you can't be serious! You think that he'll be able to win against her in that form?! Him?! Jaune?!"

"I don't see you pulling something like that, Motoyasu. And still, that form was enough to give us trouble in the past, so let's… rely on him for now." As they all stood back up, they looked ready to leave.

"You too, Itsuki?!" Motoyasu and I both shared our glances, before turning to what's important. "...Fine, but I won't thank you after this, Jaune! Let's go, everyone!" With that, using the ropes that were connected to the ship, they started to get off of the ship.

"Thanks guys." I said to no one. I knew that not a single one cared for me, but I didn't care. What I need to do is save their lives.

"And you think that I will allow that?" Directing her attention towards the remaining members of the others, she was ready to release another attack… but I won't allow it! I'm going to try something stupid _and_ crazy at the same time!

"Keep your eyes on the opponent!" With the Boarbatusk Shield spinning, I ran up to Glass and swung at her with it. Stopping what she was doing, she used both of her fans to stop my attack. That's something different!

"My, that's some strength for someone who uses a shield! Show me some more, Jaune!" Without any effort, she pushed the huge shield to the side, this time, hitting me in the stomach with her fan. It was enough to push me back!

"Damnit!" Setting the shield down, it started to spin on its own, this time moving by itself towards her. Jumping up, she looked even more confident as she was going to attack me without my shield.

"A projectile? A foolish decision if you're not going to have a shield to cover you!"

"Don't think I'm done yet! I still have some control!" Before she had the chance to attack again, I moved my hand upwards to control the Boarbatusk Shield to go after her in the air. It's not mindless, I still have control over the shield. With the speed that it has, she won't be able to deflect it so easily!

"Very good!" Turning around to block it, with the speed it had gotten, it managed to send away from us. "But… still, you won't be able to defeat me." Yeah, I figured that would happen. If I can't defeat her, then I'm going to have to-

"I have a question, Jaune. Why did you want to protect the other Heroes? If I heard correctly, I was sure that one of them said that they wouldn't have you as a helping hand." It's her time to talk? Fine.

"...I won't let my comrades die, that's all. I don't care if they hate me. As long as I'm saving them, then that's enough for me."

"A sacrifice, huh? You must be either foolish or… no, you're just foolish. Especially when you think this conversation would be enough to distract me." Without any effort, she swung her sharpened blades at Raphtalia, who was concealed in her magic. Having enough time to block it, Raphtalia raise her sword, only for half of it to be remaining. She… knew that Raphtalia was there?! And what was she talking about?! She was the one that started the conversation!

"Too slow!" As she swung her blades again, Raphtalia managed to dodge the blades, but the ribbons near her neck were cut off. She's going straight for the kill…

"And here we are again, Jaune. We're back to how this all started. Now, is there something else that you have up your sleeve? Otherwise, I'll just have to kill you and go after the remaining Heroes later." This… wasn't good. I'm almost out of juice, and Raphtalia nor Filo is enough to hold their ground against her. Do I… have to force myself to lose it again?

"Raphtalia… I might need to-"

"That's enough of the mere chats, Jaune." Suddenly, I was sent to the floor. What just happened? I heard her right behind me… but everything just happened to fast. She… effortlessly put me down into the ground? And… Raphtalia and Filo are down too? She… how can she be so fast?!

"Sadly, this is where my entertainment ends, Jaune. It was fun to have a challenge such as yourself, but those mere attacks were nothing to me." As I was on the ground, she had her foot on my back and her blade to my neck. She could easily slice off my neck without any problems… and that would be the end of me. I… lost? This… is where I'm going to die?

"Release him!" Hearing Raphtalia, I was able to see her stand up with her broken sword in hand. She… was going to fight her alone?! What about Filo?!

"Please. You think you'll be able to fight me alone? Haven't we both discovered how slow you are with a sword?" She taunted.

"I might be slow, but I'm not going to stand letting you set your foot on Mr. Jaune!" She took a nervous step, waiting for Glass's next reaction.

"You could easily run away while I kill him. My target is the Shield Hero, not you or the bird. However, if you still decide to stand against me, then I will not show mercy."

"I won't run away. I was given so many opportunities to run away when I was afraid, but I never ran! I'm not going to leave Mr. Jaune anywhere! It doesn't matter if I'm facing an opponent that's stronger than me, I can't run away when his life is on the line!" She… can't be…

"Hmph. If that is what you think, then come attack me. Let's see if you push me off your precious master!" With Raphtalia starting to run towards her, Glass only swiped the air, causing a gust of wind to be sent towards her. And yet… she struggles to hold her balance.

"Raphtalia, stop! You're only going to get yourself killed!" I tried to tell her to stop resisting as this was the end for me, but she still stood while trying to advance to her.

"And risk losing you?! I won't! I'd rather die than run away from you! I'd rather die while knowing that I fought for you! Wherever you went, I followed! You won't be alone, Mr. Jaune, I promised that to you!" Why…? Why can't… I… do anything?! If I use the emotions contained in this shield, there's no promise that I'll be coming back! There will be no promises that I won't attack anything that's in front of me! I can't. I can't. I can't! But… Raphtalia's going die. If I don't do something, then Raphtalia's going to die.

"You bore me, servant. If you're struggling against mere wind, then this will be over quickly." I then felt her blade on my neck, ready to slice off my head.

"You won't harm him!" Suddenly getting rid of the wind with her sword, Raphtalia ran towards Glass with her sword ready to strike.

"Pitiful." Turning her attention back towards Raphtalia, she swiped her fan at Raphtalia, this time, sending Raphtalia backwards.

"Raphtalia!" Hearing her cough, I could see that she was hurt. But even as she coughed, she stood back up with her sword at the ready. At this rate, she's going to die!

"Filo! Help Raphtalia! Filo! Filo! Wake up! Filo!" As she was out cold from whatever attack Glass did to her, Filo was not responding. She would not get up.

"You still stand?"

"I… won't allow you to kill him!" After running towards her again, she tried to slash her at her stomach, but Glass was quick enough to slap her with her fan. Again, she was sent backwards.

"Raphtalia… let me… I have to-"

"Don't!" Before I could even try to call upon that power, Raphtalia told me to stop. Why… was she telling me to stop? I… have to beat her, so why is she telling me to stop. "If you use that, then like you said, there's no guarantee that you won't be the same again! You… don't want that! And I don't want that either! I want to see Mr. Jaune as Mr. Jaune! Not the beast of Mr. Jaune! And besides… if you keep helping me like this because I'm injured… then what good am I?! What good am I if the shield continues to protect the sword?!" Raphtalia… don't do this! Come on! Where's that heat at?! Where is the damn heat that I felt before?! No, not now! Let me… use that damn power! No… I can't be afraid right now! I don't care if I'm not going to be myself anymore, just let me use that power to beat her!

"...Reverse Four Seasons." And just like that, the attacks were sent at Raphtalia. I couldn't look. I had to close my eyes from seeing this happen.

Why…? Why can't I use that power when I need it the most?!

Her screams. She's screaming. She's screaming. She's screaming!

I… can't allow this to happen! I can't… let Raphtalia die!

Just…! Just…! Just…! Just burn already!

And when I opened my eyes again… all I could see was the bleeding cuts that laid on her body as she laid there…

Dead.

"GRAAGHHHHHH!" Feeling the heat, I pushed it behind me, causing Glass to jump off of me. Given my opportunity, I ran to Raphtalia, seeing her body that was covered in cuts and bruises. She… died because of me. She's… dead. Raphtalia… no. You can't be dead!

"Raphtalia… wake up! Come on, we can take her, Raphtalia!" No matter what I say to her, she won't open her eyes. This was… my fault.

"See, Jaune? No matter what you do, you won't be able to-"

"**SH**ut **U**P!" I was finally feeling the rage again. I was feeling myself slip away again. Setting Raphtalia down, I started to move towards Glass on my own. I had no control over myself. "Ah. Ah. Ah! AGGGGGH!" My body… was starting to get onto all fours. I was… changing into something different. I was… why is my body hurting?!

"Oh? Another ace up your sleeve, Jaune? This time, this will be your dying breath! You will fall here, Shield Hero!" As she started to run at me, I was out of it. I couldn't move my own body as I was feeling pain all over my body.

And as her fan was her blade, she slashes at me. This… was the end for me.

...That is, if it connected.

Looking up, I could see the familiar sight of brown hair in front of me.

"Raphtalia?!" Feeling a part of myself come back a bit, I was able to yell out her name. Strangely enough, Raphtalia felt… off. Yes, she always had that warm feeling whenever I'm near her, but… something about the blue aura that surrounded her was different. It felt… strange.

"What?! You're still able to stand after-guh!" With a new sword in hand, Raphtalia had somehow managed to push Glass backwards with the new sword. With an unbelievable length, the sword was covered in blue flames that was way too tall for her to hold in her hands. And yet, she was able to hold that long blade without any trouble.

"Raphtalia…? Are you…?" With Glass out of the way, she turned to me and smiled. I wouldn't be shocked if I didn't notice the blue fiery horns on her head, along with her replaced blue colored eyes. Was this… really Raphtalia?

"I don't know where you suddenly got that power from, nor how you managed to heal, but-" Raphtalia suddenly disappeared with blue flames in front of me, and reappeared in front of Glass to strike at her. Being quick enough, Glass was able to jump out of the way and into the sky.

"Tch! Reverse Four Seasons!" Sending her attacks towards Raphtalia while in the air, Raphtalia was strangely prepared for them.

"...I" That was all I heard as Raphtalia was able to deflect all of Glass's attacks. How did she…? What is that power, Raphtalia?

"You've changed, servant! I don't know how you've managed to pull it off, but-" Before she could continue to say anything else, the boat started to shake out of nowhere. "The time limit?! The Waves are about to be over?! No… or you could've done something!" She was about to release another attack as she stood in a different posture, but she didn't. She appeared to be reluctant to do so.

"Guh!" Hearing Raphtalia grunt in pain, I looked to see her holding her head as the blue flames were slowly starting to dissipate.

"It seems that you can't hold onto whatever that form is for too long, servant! Very well, since I managed to get a taste from the party of the Shield Hero, I'm afraid that will be all for today! I bid you farewell, for now, Jaune! Our next meeting will surely be your last if you fail to get stronger!" And so, hovering to the sky, Glass disappeared into a bright light.

"Mr. Jaune…" Seeing Raphtalia fall down to the floor, I rushed towards her side to see if she was okay. I don't know how, but her wounds are healed. The cuts may be scars, but at least she's living…

...We won. We won against the Wave, and won against a strong opponent. This… was surely a victory to sleep over…


	17. (No Chapter You Can Hate Me, It's OK

Well... for first, sorry that this isn't an update to the story. Now, while it is a shame that I've been gone for a while on this story, I have to say that I'm truly sorry. I want to be honest with everyone, and I'm going to do so now.

...

...

...

I'm burned out!

I don't have any more ideas for this story anymore! At first, I was like, "oh, I could do this, and that, and so on!" but, now, I can't help but find myself burned out! Now, I'm not always thinking about this story and everything else as I'm trying to improve my art for my major(I suck). I want to write because I can... you know, _ feel _for something? I'm not asking for ideas on storytelling and so on... at least, I don't think so, but I... I don't know it's difficult nowadays.

Well, if there anyone out there who's been waiting patiently for this story, I'm sorry that this isn't another chapter again.


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